Bury the Hatchet

by SapphireStar98

Chapter 5: Alexandrite

Tuesday came and went as students poured out from their classrooms at the final bell’s toll. A general feeling of relief seemed to wash over the student body, and it was one that Starbreeze shared. Equally relieved to hear the familiar sound, she trailed behind her fellow classmates from her History course without locking eyes with a single one.

Without Autumn around, Starbreeze felt more justifiably nervous than usual. Even if the typical barrage of glares and whispers were toned down as she compared it to yesterday, she still couldn't help but feel anxious as her locker finally came into sight. Sighing, she placed her backpack on the ground next to her. Opening the locker door, she started replayed the events from yesterday afternoon as she organized her belongings. She still couldn’t pinpoint what Sunset meant by saying she wasn’t ready to hear ‘the truth’, unable to shake the thought from her mind no matter how hard she tried. What did it all mean, anyway?

With the locker door shut and new textbooks safely stored away for the day, Starbreeze heaved a sigh she didn’t realize she was holding inside.

Is there really any reason for me to keep dwelling on it? If she’s not ready to tell me, then I’ll just have to be patient, Starbreeze thought, slinging her backpack over her shoulder while she made a beeline for the double doors, head held down just enough as to not look into anyone’s eyes. Even if she trusted Sunset, she barely trusted anyone else in CHS. She wanted to so very badly, and yet she couldn’t bring herself to. Not yet.

Every step felt like she was wading through molasses as she forced herself to reach the doors, taking one glance back at the myriad of students that gathered in the halls and main foyer after a few minutes. The chatter that rose from the crowd barely reached her ears as she finally walked outside, taking in the sight of fall in full swing, and with it, a feeling of genuine relief.

That is, until a pair of arms quickly snaked around her torso.

A squeak of surprise escaped Starbreeze’s lips, much to her own embarrassment, as she broke herself free. Turning quickly on a heel revealed Pinkie Pie standing behind her, chuckling slightly as Rarity followed behind, massaging the bridge of her nose in apparent frustration.

“P-Pinkie! What the heck was that for?!” Starbreeze shouted, trying her best to stem the shocked blush that crept on her face.

Another laugh from Pinkie diffused some of the tension that built within Starbreeze, finally allowing herself to relax, even if it was only slightly. “I just wanted to get your attention, Starbreeze! Still, you should’ve seen the look on your face!” she said, breaking into another chuckle much to Starbreeze’s chagrin.

“Pinkie Pie, darling, I don’t exactly recommend behavior like this toward, well…anyone, especially not the new girls,” Rarity chided, placing a hand on Pinkie’s shoulder before leaning closer to her, whispering sharply, “Besides, we’re trying to make a good first impression, remember?”

“Well, yeah, duh! I thought we already did that yesterday, Rarity…didn’t we?”

“I’m pretty sure she meant continuing that, though.” A voice sounded from behind the three girls, causing warmth to well up within Starbreeze as she laid eyes on Autumn emerging from the doorway with a small pink poster in her hand.

A small wave from Starbreeze alerted Autumn to her presence, smiles forming on both their faces at each other's presence before she spoke up.

“H-Hey, Autumn…what’s that poster you have there?” she asked, motioning for her to hand the paper over for a moment as the girls walked down the stairs, stopping when they reached the marble statue that stood proudly as ever in front of the school.

“Oh, this?” Autumn began as Starbreeze glanced over the forest green font that graced the poster. “I decided to stop by the library after the final bell rung; thought I’d find you there, but I ended up seeing Fluttershy instead…”

“Oh, that’s right!” Pinkie exclaimed. “Fluttershy volunteers at the local animal shelter each Saturday, see?” She said, pointing to a spot on the poster that mentioned it. “She hands these out every Wednesday, doesn’t she? Maybe she just needed to print out some more!”

“Yeah, that sounds about right,” Autumn said, receiving the poster back from Starbreeze. “She just handed one of these to me after she asked me if I could help her out…poor girl. Probably doesn’t get a lot of volunteers…”

“It might be in your girl's best interest to volunteer for her then, wouldn’t you say?” Rarity asked, shooting Starbreeze a warm smile. “I’m rather positive it might help your reputation here, and if nothing else, I’m sure Fluttershy would greatly appreciate your assistance.”

Autumn studied the poster for another moment before looking back up at Starbreeze. All she did was nod, accepting Rarity’s request to help her friend, as Autumn smiled warmly to accompany the gesture.

“Sure, Rarity. We’ll help her out,” Autumn confirmed, heading closer to Starbreeze to place a hand on her shoulder while not noticing the blush that slowly crept on her friend’s cheeks from the simple touch. “Oh yeah, Rarity, about the whole meet-up we were gonna do…”

Starbreeze could barely speak, too tangled up in thoughts of her own to really focus on the rest of what the girls spoke of, only hearing snippets of conversation about where they needed to be. Her heart felt like it was about to sprout wings as she tried to stop her body from beginning to shake from Autumn being so close to her. And yet…she didn’t understand why she felt the way she did. Certainly, after nearly three months of living with Autumn she would’ve come to fully realize the feelings she had toward her best friend, but…

Better late than never I guess.

Snapping back to reality when Rarity mentioned the Carousel Boutique, the girls went their separate ways after exchanging waves and goodbyes. Autumn and Starbreeze began to make their way past the statue as the rest of the girls did, Autumn mentioning to Starbreeze that Rarity had offered to drive them there.

“Why’d you go and turn that down, anyway?” Starbreeze questioned, giving a playfully light punch to Autumn’s upper arm.

Before Autumn could answer, a voice sounded from behind them.

“So, where are you two headed?” The source of the voice, coming from a figure leaning against the statue, froze the girls in their tracks. Breaking out of their momentary paralysis, the duo turned to lock eyes with a girl donning pale blue hair that poked out of a darker blue hoodie, violet eyes shining underneath with pure contempt for their presence.

Autumn caught on quickly, eyebrows furrowed as she racked her brain trying to remember where she had seen someone like her. She took a step forward, startling Starbreeze as she could only gaze on with quickly widening, scared eyes. “You’re that girl from my second period class, aren’t you? Couldn’t of thought those death glares were coming from any normal violet eyes.”

“So, you do know of the Great and Powerful Trixie?” She said while she removed the hood from her head, eyes narrowing as she spoke with an air of superiority that took Autumn by surprise.

I really shouldn’t be taking any chances with this girl, Autumn thought as she glanced back at Starbreeze. Quickly noticing her deer-in-the-headlights expression, Autumn focused her gaze back on Trixie, bravado quickly returning.

I’ll try to make this quick, Starry.

“So, Trixie…” Autumn began. “What’s your deal?”

“My deal? Trixie was wondering the same exact thing about you two,” she remarked as she crossed her arms. “What could two students from Crystal Prep Academy possibly want with CHS other than to ruin its reputation?” Autumn recoiled slightly, causing Trixie to smirk and continue. “After all, the Friendship Games are this year, are they not?”

“Your point being…what, exactly?”

Trixie donned a deep scowl, causing a look of incredulity to cross Autumn's face.

“You really are clueless, aren’t you? It’s obvious you both are here to sabotage the Friendship Games and ruin Canterlot High’s reputation!”

“What.”

The girl’s eyes narrowed again. “Don’t play dumb with Trixie.”

Against all odds, Autumn managed to throw her a wry smirk. “Is that your shtick? Please, don’t tell me that’s your shtick,” she said, receiving a glare for her trouble. “But, seriously, we’re not trying to cause any trouble around here,” she retorted, noticing a few students were hanging around the general area, glancing back and forth between her and Trixie. We just-”

“Do you really expect me to believe you?” Trixie interrupted, pointing an accusatory finger Autumn’s way. “Especially after you insulted the Great and Powerful Trixie? You both must take me for a fool, don’t you?”

With theatrics like that? Yes, I do. Better keep my mouth shut on that topic, though...

“I never said that, did I?” Well, almost. “I’m just trying to tell you that we came here-”

“To cause nothing but strife for CHS and its students? Trixie can see through those lies you spew.”

“What.” As much as she wanted to, Autumn couldn’t deflect Trixie’s words with snarky bravado any longer as frustration began to build up inside her, freezing her in her tracks as much as she wanted to move back to comfort Starbreeze, whose eyes were still wide with building shock at Trixie’s words.

“You heard me, right? Trixie. Doesn’t. Believe. You.” With every emphasized word, she took a confident step forward in Autumn’s direction, stopping only when there was about an inch or two separating them in order to lock eyes with her. “I’m fairly certain the entire school doesn’t, either; those few girls you call your friends probably doubt you as much as I do.”

Silence greeted her as she smugly walked back several steps to give some distance, throwing a mocking smirk Autumn's way. The students around them began to form together in a small crowd, eyes equally wide not with terror, but with anticipation.

Trixie chuckled. “Now you’re both shaking like leaves. I guess that’s why your name is Autumn, huh? It makes sense that someone named that could only be so…fragile…at least, under all that bravado, anyway.”

Starbreeze looked down at her feet, eyes still wide, with hitched, shaky breaths as the words that left Trixie’s lips sank deep into her mind, replaying like a broken record. The collective eyes of the ring of students that surrounded them seemed to focus directly on her and Autumn, waiting for something to happen or something to be said.

Autumn didn’t say a single word, eyes equally wide with shock, a side of her completely divorced from the image of her seared in Starbreeze’s mind. A small crack in the surface, to be sure, but one that she never wished to see from the girl who defended her all those years ago from torment she endured for far too long.

That’s enough.

Quiet, dark laughter Starbreeze didn’t believe she was capable of before escaped her lips. It scared her, and yet…it almost felt like a defense mechanism. One that she desperately needed, apparently, as adrenaline rushed through her system, replacing all previous fear with fury.

I guess it’s time to repay the favor, isn’t it? I’m not just gonna stand there and let you take this, Autumn. Not now.

She looked up quickly, startling the crowd and Trixie herself with what they saw. A furious glare, akin to a fiery cobalt blaze and worlds apart from the timid, scared eyes they saw before, held nothing but determination and pure, unleaded anger aimed directly at Trixie herself.

Autumn looked back at her friend, not entirely surprised that the anger on display was unleashed at all; all she could do was wait to see how it played out, replaying Trixie’s scathing words in her mind as her feet entered her field of vision. A slight breeze began to blow as silence fell, scattering fallen leaves across the gray pavement.

“Do you really think I’d let you get away with insulting her like that?” Starbreeze began to speak quietly, dispersing tense silence that gripped the surrounding area for what seemed like an eternity. Starbreeze’s eyes narrowed, harboring a deathly cold stare that froze Trixie in her tracks.

“Well?” Starbreeze murmured, voice holding the same chill. “Do you?”

“D-Do you really think someone like you could-” Trixie stammered, bravado quickly fading as she scrambled to set it back up.

“Shut up,” Starbreeze murmured, loud enough compared to the silence that gripped the crowd that Trixie did so out of sudden shock at the burst of confidence on display. She continued forward, stepping in front of Autumn when she reached her position, looking up to lock eyes with Trixie. “And listen.”

Trixie couldn’t say a word, eyes wide with shock that resonated with the crowd around them.

I won’t let her speak. Not after what she said.

“Do you of all people expect me to believe I would just stand there, shaking like a leaf after you insulted my friend to her face?” She spoke, voice raising in intensity with every word that left her lips even if the general tone in her voice was tranquil. At least, that’s how she wanted it to sound.

“You must take me for a fool, like I’m some kind of pushover, don’t you? Well, here’s a wake-up call for you, oh Great and Powerful Trixie. I’m not. I never will be, no matter how shy I may seem. You and all the students around you can insult me all you please until the end of time, just like the students at Crystal Prep did,” she continued to speak, stepping closer and closer to Trixie until she was right up in her face.

The prior calm facade Starbreeze held began to crack as her cobalt glare bored holes into Trixie, her pupils reducing to a simple blue pinprick. She felt tears begin to well up in the corners of her eyes, adrenaline beginning to fade as the floodgates in her mind began to crack.

All Autumn could do was stand in shock at her friend’s sudden burst of confidence, sharing her reaction with the rest of the crowd of students. Was this really the same person she defended all those years ago? Was this really the same Starbreeze she’d known for all that time?

“But just remember this, Trixie,” Starbreeze shouted, her previous calm demeanor replaced with nothing but rage, almost taking a sick satisfaction in the way Trixie flinched from her sudden increase in volume. Almost. “As soon as you dare to insult Autumn again…”

Starbreeze managed corner Trixie up to where she had her back against the smooth marble of the statue, placing a single finger on her chest as she looked deep into Trixie’s scared violet eyes. She knew Trixie wanted to get away. She wouldn’t let her.

“This won’t be the first time you hear from me, and it certainly will not be the last,” Starbreeze spoke, with a deep, guttural growl to her voice that made Trixie shudder in fear. Noticing the attempt to rebuild her confidence and bravado from the sudden shift in her eyes and posture, Starbreeze finally decided she had done enough. The threat was there. Now all Trixie had to do was not taunt Autumn again, which seemed likely for the time being.

Taking a step away, she turned away from a very shaky Trixie to head back to where Autumn stood. Shooting another glare her way, she murmured, “Just…go away. Leave us alone, damn it.”

Silence spread over the crowd as the shock of Starbreeze’s words and actions began to sink in.

Trixie, however, managed to take a step forward despite the shakiness in her legs. “Tch. Y-you really think that your words got to me? You must be as gullible as you look, for the Great and Powerful Trixie will not stoop to such pettiness!” Trixie exclaimed, rummaging through her jacket pockets soon after.

Autumn reclaimed her own confidence after some deep breaths, placing a comforting hand on Starbreeze.

All she could do afterwards was hold her head down, unable to keep most of the adrenaline she had before as tears began to stream down her cheeks. An all-too-familiar blush creeped on her face, hidden from the crowd and Autumn’s view. Just how she wanted it to be, at least for now.

“Pretty sure you did a little bit ago if you pissed off Starbreeze of all people,” Autumn retorted, smirking until a cloud of smoke filled the area. The pale blue haze surrounded the duo and the crowd around them for a moment until it eventually dissipated, spurring coughs from everyone affected. As the crowd began to thin and Trixie ran away from a tree she hid behind with her hood pulled over her head, Autumn noticed a girl with a cowboy hat and denim skirt throw a thumbs-up their way before departing herself.

Autumn wordlessly led Starbreeze in the direction of the Carousel Boutique, wiping tears from her eyes with one hand while having her other hand on Starbreeze’s right shoulder. One thought shone above all else, even as Starbreeze’s declaration replayed in her mind over and over.

I really owe you for that one, don’t I Starry? Don’t you worry…one of these days, I’ll repay the favor tenfold. I promise.

---

“I didn’t know what to expect,” Autumn mused, looking upon the exterior of the Carousel Boutique with equal parts curiosity and confusion. A mix of light blue and purple swamped her vision, standing out from the dull colors the buildings flanking it had to offer, as a small sign with a dress and purse hung over them. It swayed in the breeze that picked up as the duo made their way there, as a few fallen leaves on the sidewalk strode in front of their feet.

Starbreeze chuckled, throwing her a wry smirk. “Seems about right to me; I mean, the place is called the Carousel Boutique, after all…”

“True.”

Stepping through the door after a few moments of window-shopping revealed the same amount of color as the shop’s exterior held. A warm, inviting aura enveloped the duo as Autumn began to look around among the myriad of clothing for any sign of violet hair. Some of the options were every bit as fancy as Rarity was, and it took all of Autumn’s willpower to not browse until she spoke to her first.

“Oh, hello, darlings!”

Right on cue.

A voice sounded from the top of the staircase at the back of the store as a familiar face framed with purple, curled hair entered their vision. Donning red glasses and attire similar to Monday’s, Rarity strode up to them with a pincushion in her hand.

“I'm so glad you two could make it!” She exclaimed as she took a tape measure off a nearby table, heading towards the girls, sizing them up when she finally reached their position. A wave of shock washed over Autumn for a second or two before she began to relax; Starbreeze seemed the same way, as she noticed she was clutching her arm again out of shyness.

“Oh, this is just perfect!” Rarity turned towards them with a look of satisfaction after jotting numbers down in a nearby notepad. “When Fluttershy had mentioned to me about how you girls wanted a wardrobe update, I could barely hold myself together!” She exclaimed.

“Yeah, we noticed,” Autumn said, snickering a little until Starbreeze elbowed her in the arm.

Rarity paused, turning around to face away from the duo with a hand on her chin in thought. “Of course, I could always make something custom for you both, if nothing here catches your eye. Now that I have some measurements, it would be rather trivial…”

Turning Autumn and Starbreeze around to face the large amount of options around them, she motioned them towards some nearby clothing racks to browse. “But, no matter! Take all the time you need, girls. The most expensive item each of you pick out is on the house!” She said, her voice brimming with excitement that Autumn wasn’t aware she was capable of.

“W-Wait, seriously? That doesn’t seem like a good business practice, you know.” Autumn threw her an incredulous look, kneeling down to dig through her backpack near her on the floor for her wallet. “We can cover the cost, Ra-”

Rarity helped her up and placed a finger to Autumn’s lips to cut her off.

“I am very serious, darling,” she said, a determined smile taking hold soon after she spoke. “Take as much time as you need! I’ll be around if you need anything, okay?” Rarity mentioned, waving elegantly as she headed towards other customers who had wandered inside.

“A-Alright…I-I mean, if it’s okay with you, then…” Starbreeze murmured, clearly too shy to speak up about much as she trailed off, slowly making her way to a shelf filled with pairs of shoes.

Something just didn't sit right in Autumn’s gut about having something given to her for free, even if Rarity seemed not to want to budge on the topic. The generosity Rarity displayed to her and Starbreeze…felt nice.

Her eyes eventually fixed on Starbreeze and her position in the store, noticing that she already had her eye on some cute long-sleeved shirts. Autumn could’ve sworn she saw a pang of guilt in her eyes, however small it seemed. At least she was enjoying herself compared to how she was earlier…even she couldn’t believe Starbreeze was capable of standing up for her like that.

When was the last time she stood up for herself like that, anyway? Maybe it was when…when she left her parents, right?

Autumn decided it was high time she stopped dwelling on the past. Her eyes drifted to a deep red scarf and denim jacket on a mannequin, placed near a table that displayed several different scarves for the season in a decent amount of colors, in order to distract herself. She smiled wide as several possibilities began to pop up in her mind.

There was a lot of shopping to be done, that much was for sure.

---

Houses, trees and cars seemed to blend together in a sea of color, illuminated by the streetlights above as Autumn stared out the passenger-side window of Rarity’s car. Rarity’s generosity knew no limits, apparently, when she offered to drive her and Starbreeze home to avoid walking through the strong winds that began to pick up outside. They really did spend a lot of time there, now that she thought about it; with Rarity’s attempts to show off more fall discounts than someone could shake a stick at, they certainly had a lot to look through. Even when the pressure was taken off of them for small moments at a time, due to other customers coming and going, she didn’t let up too much.

Two bags of clothes for each of them that sat next to Starbreeze in the backseat showed the fruits of Rarity’s labor. Not even the usually timid Starbreeze could resist a good deal, after all.

Emphasis on usually, Autumn thought to herself, her mind beginning to wander back to the moment in time when Starbreeze stood up for her so fiercely. Never thought that Starry of all people would be able to do all that.

“You know,” Rarity spoke up to break the encroaching silence. “I know about the…incident between you girls and Trixie.”

“...What?” Starbreeze, surprisingly, was the first to say something, cutting Autumn off before she could even form a thought of what to respond with. Her voice was monotone, just barely hiding the shock Autumn knew, all too well, that she must have been feeling from Rarity’s statement.

“W-Well, you see…a good friend of mine had relayed the event to me after I had returned to the boutique. I assume she saw most of the ordeal, as her description was rather…detailed,” Rarity explained, taking care not to fray already-strained nerves by speaking in a calm tone. Without looking from the road, she asked in a very concerned voice, “Are you alright, darlings? I wouldn't want you getting into any unnecessary trouble with anyone, especially not Trixie…”

Silence gripped the duo in response.

“We’ll be okay, Rarity,” Starbreeze murmured in an attempt to deter the silence from creeping any further upon them. “I promise, whatever Trixie tries to do…I’ll stop her.”

Said with such steely determination, Autumn didn’t exactly know what to make of her friend’s declaration; neither did Rarity, if her concerned look aimed at the road ahead was any indication. Noticing blue paint and familiar flowers shining in the sunset gave her, at least, a small idea.

“Hey, Rarity,” Autumn spoke up, catching the fashionista’s attention as she pointed towards her home. The car, and with it, the building tension, stopped in front of the garage door.

“I’m sorry for asking about a rather touchy subject, darlings,” Rarity apologized, turning to face Starbreeze with a warm, understanding smile. “But, I just want to ask one more little thing before you go.”

“What’s up?” Autumn asked, unbuckling her seatbelt as she did.

“Did you both have a lovely time shopping?” Rarity asked with apparently sparkling eyes.

“Yeah, actually. It was kind of surprising seeing all the stuff you had, so we might of taken a bit too long looking around…” Autumn responded.

Rarity waved her hand down at the mention, gazing upon the house she had parked in front of with greater interest. “Now that is a stunning abode…” She muttered, staring in awe at the architecture in front of her. She quickly stopped herself from getting caught up in the house’s details as she locked eyes with Autumn again. “O-Oh, it’s not an issue at all, darlings! I’m rather happy to know you had a lovely time, and it’s been a pleasure helping you both.”

She leaned in close to Autumn, placing a hand opposite to her mouth as she whispered sharply, “You can come back anytime, right?”

Autumn could only giggle in response before giving a simple nod. Rarity looked ecstatic as her blue eyes seemed to shine from happiness again. “Fantastic, darlings! Oh, I just can't wait to see you both again!” she exclaimed as the duo closed the car doors behind them, multicolored bags and other belongings in hand. The duo waved to Rarity as they approached the front door to Autumn’s house; she did the same, waving goodbye rather fancifully before heading out of the driveway.

Autumn let out a sigh she didn’t realize she was holding.

It was really a shame that Autumn couldn't see more of that charitable behavior at Crystal Prep before they transferred or, hell, at CHS with their current standing with most of the school’s occupants.

Even if Rarity wasn't too fond of us, she at least had the courtesy to hide it pretty damn well. Or...maybe that kind of animosity genuinely doesn’t exist with her?

Autumn could barely tell anymore from the blurring lines in her mind, but it really didn't matter. All that mattered was that they made it home okay, for the most part. She was thankful for that at the very least; she was certain that Starbreeze was too, if the weak smile that faced her was any indication.

Author's Note:

This chapter was really fun to write, I have to admit.

Constructive criticism is always appreciated!