Welcome To Ponyville High

by xxGamer101xx

Chapter 11

Laughter
No matter what, Pinkie would make it her goal to make sure you had a smile on your face. It was somewhat of a necessity she had acquired during her time at the rock farm. When her father made her and her sisters work, she would be there to make them smile. She would always make them laugh and smile, but she wished her parents would notice her gift. However, whenever she made her sisters laugh, her father would give her a look and tell them to go back to work. Whenever her father told her that, it made her feel like she didn't belong.

Of course she loved her parents, and of course her sisters. She loved to be with her family, but she just didn't feel at home at the rock farm. Instead of smiling and being happy, she just felt miserable and sad. Her mother knew how much it meant for her to smile, and so did her sister. But it wouldn’t happen on their farm. So, they moved away from the rock farm. Pinkie still made it her mission to see all of her friends with a bright smile on their faces.

So when she saw the frown on Twilight’s face, it reminded her of the frowns her sisters had so long ago. As Twilight entered the school building, shoulders slumped and a gloomy frown upon her lips, Pinkie started planning her next endeavor in secrecy. Well, she decided to surprise her at her locker.

"No friend of mine is going to be sad." remarked Pinkie as she looked at the sad look on Twilight's face.

Pinkie stopped her skipping when she saw Pokey Pierce at his locker, which was just a few numbers down. When she approached their section, Pokey looked over and greeted her with a sly grin.

"Hi Pokey." greeted Pinkie as she gave him a forced grin. "You're standing in front of my locker."

Pokey smirked and stood in front of her. "I am?"

"I would appreciate it you move out of the way. Please." answered Pinkie as she gave him another forceful smile.

Pokey didn't say anything as he moved out the way. He went to the next to Pinkie and closed his locker and mumbled, "Whatsoever, weirdo."

Pinkie only laughed at his comment in response. “It takes a weirdo to know one.”

“Whatever, Pie,” he scoffed.

Pinkie gave him a forced grin, stowing away any bad thoughts behind it. She then smiled and simply remarked, “Okie-dokie-lokie.”

Pokey only rolled his eyes at her response and laughed again. “Weirdo.” As he walked away from the locker, he shot her one last look of annoyance before turning back around. Pinkie stuck out her tongue and blew a raspberry, but stopped when she saw Twilight walking her way.

No friend of mine is going to be a mopey mope. Mission is a go!

“Hey, Twilight!” she cheerily chirped.

“Hi, Pinkie.” murmured Twilight as she opened her locker.

Pinkie gave the girl a toothy grin. “How are youuuu?”

Twilight simply shrugged and closed her locker. “I’m fine.” she mumbled.

Her expression faltered slightly, noting how down her friend really was. “What’s up?”

“Nothing,” her friend mumbled, just as quiet as before.

What seems to be eating her up?

Pinkie leaned on the locker next to her, a giggle escaping her. “Hey, Twilight, wanna hear a joke?”

Twilight shrugged. “Sure. I guess.”

Another snicker made it past Pinkie’s lips. “So the past, present, and the future walk into a bar.”

She paused for moment, which caused Twilight to sigh. She then asked, “And?”

Pinkie giggled again even harder, fighting the urge to laugh. “It was... tense!”

Her little joke caused a slight smirk and the smallest chuckle to escape from Twilight. “Funny,” she said, still a bit dead.

Pinkie blinked and only sighed in response. “Oh… I thought you’d laugh.”

With a shake of her head, she turned away. “See ya later, Pinkie,” replied Twilight as she walked away.

As her friend walked past her, Pinkie’s laughing stopped as she eyed her for a moment. She watched Twilight walk into her first period class before yelling after her, “ CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!”
***
As the school day went, Pinkie thought out a plan to cheer up her nerdy friend. It wasn’t until last period bell rang that she finally came up with an idea. Everybody in the halls saw the smile on her face as she happily skipped out of her classroom. Her smile grew wider when she found Twilight at her locker.

“Twiiiiiiiliiiiiiight,” she sang as she waved happily.

Twilight could see the unusually high amounts of happiness, which prompted her to raise a brow. “Yes, Pinkie?” she questioned in a monotone voice.

A smirk was her only warning before the pink haired devil shouted, “Tickle Attack!”

Pinkie then shot her arms out to her sides, her fingers scurrying along her friend. The sudden assault on her ticklish spots caught the girl off guard, and she dropped her books. As the army of fingers abusing her weaknesses went on, Twilight’s frown disappeared and was replaced with her uncontrollable laughter. Pinkie soon started laughing along with her as she tried prying her off, to no avail.

“Pinkie… Pinkie stop! I’m ticklish!” she pleaded, tears forming from her constant laughing. "Stop please. I never laughed this much before."

Pinkie eventually declared peace and grinned at Twilight, who was still laughing. “I kinda gathered that,” she joked, giggling with Twilight.

Twilight’s laughing died down, leaving her with a few giggles here and there. “I guess you did,” she replied, life in her voice now.

Pinkie nodded with a smile as she helped her gather her books. When they were all back in Twilight’s arms, she waved her off. “See ya, Twilight!”

"See you Pinkie." laughed Twilight as she waved at her. Moments had passed and her laughter had died down. "Thank you putting a smile on my face."

Pinkie snorted as she was still laughing. "No problem Twilight."

While her friend walked away with a much brighter expression, Pinkie skipped away while quietly cheering to herself. She smiled when she saw the smile on Twilight's face. It reminded her so much of times she would put smiles on the faces of her sisters. It made her laugh that she was able to put a smile on friends face.

Operation Make Twilight Laugh: SUCCESS!
***
Kindness
Ask anyone around, they’ll all agree on who is the nicest one around. The quiet, meek girl who spends her time caring for animals. The one who sometimes feels like animals are much easier to understand than other people. Even so, Fluttershy was there when you needed a kind heart. A heart that has no exception and is always there for you when you need it.

Just because you don’t say much, doesn’t mean you don’t know anything. That’s what Fluttershy was; she observed others while they were busy talking. She was quiet, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t listening to the things people said around her. What else would she do in class?

She noticed how agitated Twilight would get when the others would ask if she was okay. How she would say she was fine and to just drop the subject. But from the tone of Twilight’s voice, she knew that Twilight was not okay. None of them believed her for a second when she said that. She wouldn’t join the rest and constantly ask her the same questions again and again. She needed a new approach, and she wouldn’t leave her friend alone now. Not with such a stressed expression.

In English, she looked to her left and watched Twilight frantically writing notes down. She could see that the tiny smile she’d had on her first days was now replaced with a frown. With a small tingle of anticipation, she leaned closer to her friend.

“Twilight… we're only asking if you’re okay a lot because we care about you,” she whispered. “You’re our friend and we just want to make sure everything’s okay.”

Twilight didn't look up from her notebook as she respond to her in a hushed whisper, “I know.”

"So, what's wrong?"

Twilight had only frowned and put her head down in her notebook. She muttered, "Nothing."

Moments passed and the silence was brought back. Fluttershy sighed as she went down to her notebook to write. She looked and saw that Twilight was back to frantically writing into her notebook.
***
Kids poured out of their classes as the bell rang. Fluttershy walked down the hall to her locker, shocked to see Twilight waiting there. She looked at the frown and the bags underneath her eyes. As Twilight went and approached her, she gave Twilight a warm smile and Twilight gave her a smile back.

“Fluttershy,” said the girl in a nervous tone, “I should tell you what’s been bothering me lately.”

She nodded and gave her a smile. “Okay. What is it?”

Twilight kept silent as she thought for a moment, then sighed and faced her again. “I’ve been having… strange dreams lately.”

“H-How strange?” Fluttershy asked, a familiar curiosity entering her tone.

“Voices talk to me like they know me from somewhere,” replied Twilight. She leaned against the locker and avoided eye contact with her.

“If it helps… I’ve been having odd dreams too.”

Twilight blinked. “Really?”

Fluttershy nodded and softly added, “They sound like the ones you've been having.”

“Are you sure?” Twilight questioned, quickly looking up from the ground.

"Yes. Voices talking to me. Like they know me."

"I see." mumbled Twilight. "It makes you feel crazy doesn't it? Like you're the only one that has these dreams and it feels like you're going crazy."

"I know that feeling."

"Really?"

“Yes,” she nodded. Fluttershy gave her friend a smile as she put her hand on her shoulder. “If you want, whenever you have these dreams you can tell me about them.”

A look of disbelief plastered her expression. “Are you sure about?"

“Of course,” Fluttershy said with a nod.

Twilight smiled as she hugged her friend tightly. “Thank you so much, Fluttershy,” she whispered.

She returned the gesture gladly, happy to see some relief for the stressed girl. “What are friends for?”
***
Loyalty
Rainbow Dash may be lazy, being proud of sleeping for ten hours straight once, but there is one thing no one can deny. She is the most loyal of them all. If you tell her a secret, she’ll keep it to her grave. Twilight had made no mistake when she told her about the dreams she’d been having. However, Rainbow did come close to spilling the beans.

Outside on the track, the gym class was running for the day’s activity. Rainbow was the first to finish running the warm up laps, and she was soon joined by Applejack. Rainbow sat in the shade under the scoreboard and laid down there. The farm girl jogged up to her as she caught her breath away from the sun. She glanced up and gave her friend a cocky smile.

“Hey, AJ,” Rainbow greeted as her cocky grin grew louder. "Had any trouble catching up with you?"

“Hey, Rainbow,” panted Applejack as she sat down next to her. She ignored her comment and joked, "Well Ah be, yer a fast one aren't ya?"

Rainbow smirked. "I didn't think you'll be able to catch up with me AJ."

Applejack gave her a sly grin. "Ah wouldn't be so boastful if Ah were you."

Rainbow laughed. "Whatever."

“Mind if… ah ask ya something?”

Rainbow shrugged as she yawned. “Sure. What’s up?”

The way Applejack shifted looked like she’d just tried robbing a bank. “Ah know I shouldn’t be doing this behind her back an’ all, but do ya know what’s been bothering Twilight so much?”

Rainbow stopped mid yawn as she looked to her friend. She sat in silence for a few moments as she tried to figure out how to respond to her.

No. I promised Twilight I would keep this all a secret. I can’t just break my promise like this.

Rainbow entertained the idea of lying, but she knew the farmgirl could sniff out something like that. Applejack always had this talent of finding out if someone was lying. In the end, she sighed and scratched the back of her head. “Well… she did.” Before her friend could push for more, she held up a hand and covered her mouth.

Applejack raised an eyebrow as she looked at the strange actions that Rainbow was doing. "What are ya doing there Rainbow?"

Rainbow only sighed in response as she resumed, “But… I promised her I wouldn’t tell anyone. Not even you girls.”

“Come on, she’s got a lot on her mind,” Applejack pressed. “We gotta know what’s goin’ on so we can help her.”

Rainbow shook her head. “I made a promise to her, AJ,” she said firmly, laying back on the ground. Shen then said to the farm girl, “Look, maybe she’d be willing to tell you, too. You two are friends, too. I bet she’d be okay telling you.”

“I guess yer right,” Applejack sighed as she stood up. “Thanks anyway, Rainbow.”

“No problem,” she yawned.

“Ah don’t mean to push a promise. Ah’m just concerned fer Twilight is all. She’s been acting all kinds of weird lately and it ain’t getting better,” said Applejack, nervously rubbing her arm.

Rainbow sat up from the ground with a smirk on her face. “Hey, c’mon, I know that. Just go ask her. Maybe it’ll help her,” she replied lightheartedly, getting up as the class finished warming up

Applejack nodded and stood up as well. "That sounds like a good idea Rainbow."

"I know." remarked Rainbow as her eyes widened in shock. "You can ask her."

"Really?" asked Applejack. "Ah don't want her to think that Ah'm bugging her."

"Relax Applejack." smirked Rainbow, "If she told me what's bothering her, then she'll be able to tell you what's been bothering her."

Applejack nodded. "Ah see." She then jogged to where the class where going. As she saw Applejack jog away, Rainbow only yawned again as thoughts began to start racing through her mind.

Why does everyone seem to trust me all their secrets?

“Hey there, Rainbow.” She glanced over to see Zephyr again. She only groaned when she saw the goofy grin that was on his face.

Rainbow sighed as she shot a glare at the sophomore. “What do you want, Zephyr?”

He only smiled in response. “Just wanted to know how you are this fine day,” he said with a wink.

Rainbow groaned in response. "Well if you want to know so badly, I'm doing fine."

Zephyr smiled and winked at her again, "That's good to hear."

Rainbow simply scoffed as she jogged away from. “Can’t a guy take a hint?” she muttered under her breath.
***
Generosity
Being an older sister means you have to share things. Sharing the love of your parents and sometimes sharing clothes. Rarity learned over the years that if she shared her problems with her sister Sweetie Belle, it would give her a chance to open up in return. Open up and tell her about her day or any problems she had. If this tactic worked with her sister, then perhaps it could work to help Twilight open up. It wouldn’t hurt to try at least.

As they were sitting in lunch, Rarity looked around the table and noticed that her and Twilight were the only ones present at the moment. The rest had gotten on line to get food, which gave Rarity an idea.

“I wonder who I’ll get a flower from,” Rarity hummed aloud, resting her head on her palm. “How about you, darling?” She waited several moments to get Twilight’s attention, then loudly huffed as the bookworm’s eyes stayed glued to the book in front of her.

Twilight looked up from her book and to Rarity. “Did you say something, Rarity?”

Rarity smiled again and then repeated herself. “I said I wonder who my flower will come from.” Her smile turned a bit brighter as she set forth. “Have you been thinking of someone?”

“What would the flower be for?” she asked. Rarity would have groaned if Twilight wasn’t new to the school.

“Every year we have Flowers for Hearts Day. The boys give a girl of their choosing a flower,” she giddily explained. “Would you be getting a flower?”

Twilight shrugged at her response. “I wouldn’t know that answer. I’m sorry.”

Rarity smiled again at the girl. “Surely there must someone that’s taken a fancy to you, dear,” she teasingly remarked.

Twilight blinked and soon replied. “I don’t know.”

“Are you sure?” Her trump card, from days of offhand observations. “Not even that sweet boy, Comet Tail?”

"How do you know about Comet Tail?" asked Twilight in a hushed tone. Twilight's face had gotten red and she then muttered, "Not that I care or anything."

"I have my ways of knowing things, darling." remarked Rarity as she smirked. She then added, "By the way your acting then it looks like you do have some sort of feelings for him."

Twilight’s face had gotten red at her words, and she quickly stood up from the lunch table. As her face grew redder and hotter, she quickly said, “I just remembered I have to be at the library!”

Rarity put but her hand over her mouth, trying her best to hide her laugh. “I’m sure he’ll pass by at some point for your gift. He seems to enjoy passing by to see you,” she continued, adoring the tomato color Twilight had now become.

The studious girl had ignored Rarity's comment as she bolted out of the cafeteria. She moved so fast she had almost bumped into Braeburn, who was walking by. Braeburn looked at the sprinting Twilight with a confused look. He then made his way over to Rarity.

“Well someone’s all flustered,” Rarity devilishly snickered.

"Howdy there, Rarity,” smiled Braeburn as he sat across from her. His smile was then turned into one of amusement. “Why’s Twilight barrelin’ out in such a hurry?”

Rarity giggled before taking a sip from her water bottle. “Don’t worry about it, Braeburn, dear. I think I just learned something from Twilight.”

“Really?” smiled Braeburn as he laughed. “What did ya learn?”

She only let out a small giggle. “Girls’ business, Braeburn. It’s very ungentlemanly to pry, you know.”

Braeburn only chuckled in response. “Well if ya say so, Rarity.”
***
Honesty
Granny Smith didn’t raise liars. Not a soul in the Apple family would ever lie to anyone. In fact, they were horrible liars. They always spoke what was on their mind and treated all those who crossed their path with respect. It didn't take Applejack long to realize that something was eating away at Twilight. Her whole personality since her first day in Ponyville had changed. She seemed more distant, more stressed, and always had a look of annoyance on her face.

She decided that it was best she tried confronting her friend about her behavior for the past weeks. As the last period bell rang, Applejack made her way to her locker. As she approached her locker, she noticed another student with blue spiky hair walking towards her.

“Hey, AJ,” greeted Soarin as he smiled towards her. “Is your sister still selling Cutie Mark Cookies?”

Applejack nodded as she greeted the teenager, “Yes, why do ya ask?”

“Does she still have the Apple Pie Crumbs left?”

“Ah think so.”

“Alright, cool. If you don’t mind, tell her I want to make some orders for her.”

As Applejack opened her mouth to respond to Soarin, she looked and saw that Twilight was standing by her locker. She looked back at Soarin and simply said, “Sorry to be rude, Soarin, but Ah have something to do.”

Soarin nodded and smiled at her. “It's cool, no worries. See ya, AJ.”

Applejack smiled in response as she waved him goodbye. She then walked to Twilight and noticed the frown that she had on her face still. “Twilight,” greeted Applejack as she walked to her locker. “How are ya, sugarcube?”

“I’m fine. How are you?” her friend asked with a smile.

“Not too bad,” she replied with a nod. She looked at Twilight at the corner of her eye and noticed that her smile soon turned into a look filled with nervousness.

“AJ,” she suddenly said, closing her locker. “I need to be honest with you.”

“What are ya talking about?” Applejack questioned.

Twilight closed her eyes and sighed. “The reason why I’ve been… well, not myself recently is because… I’ve been having strange dreams lately. Dreams filled with voices talking to me. Like I should them from somewhere.”

“Oh.”

“...yeah….”

Applejack slowly nodded. What she was planning on saying next had one of two possibilities. “If ah’m being honest here too, Twi, ah’ve been having dreams like that, too.”

Twilight’s eyes widened in shock at her response. “You’re serious?”

“Eeyup,” nodded Applejack. “At first ah thought ah was going crazy or something, but then Pinkie told me in Home Ec. that she’s been having weird dreams.”

Twilight gave Applejack a huge smile. “AJ, don’t you realize what this means?”

Applejack ignored her friend’s comment as she continued. “Then again, she also told me she gets weird dreams whenever she eats a lot of sugar. Ah told her to lay off, but that didn't stop her.

“Applejack.”

“Then Rainbow Dash was talking about that time she read all the Daring Doo books in one day, and she started to dream that she was in the books.”

“Earth to Applejack,” Twilight said, shaking her softly.

“Then there was that one time Rarity was talking about how she had a nightmare where no matter how hard she tried, no clothes of hers were able to match. And then there was Fluttershy talking about how she dreamt of having to give a public speech-”

“AJ!” shouted Twilight, still shaking the farmgirl.

Applejack shook her head and looked to her. “Sorry about that. What were ya saying, Twilight?”

Twilight shook her head as she grabbed Applejack shoulders. She held her there as she stared intently at her green eyes. “Applejack don’t you know what this means?”

“Er… nope,” Applejack murmured as she backed away from the girl. “Ah don’t know. What does it mean?”

“I’m not going crazy!”

She blinked in confusion. “What?”

Twilight laughed as she turned from the girl. She smiled as she let out a nervous laugh. “I’ll show you what I mean tomorrow.”

Applejack didn't say anything as she closed her locker door. She looked and saw Twilight walking out of the school building. She put on her cowboy hat and quietly muttered to herself, “That there must be the weirdest girl ah’ve ever seen. And ah’m friends with Pinkie.”
***
Magic
As Twilight finished brushing her hair, she looked on her desk and saw the old leather book. She picked the book up and traced the gemstones on the cover with her index finger.

“I think it's time I tell them what’s going on,” she muttered to herself. She paused for a moment as she looked in the mirror. “I’m sorry, Luna. I can’t lie to them anymore.”

She put the book in her bag, hiding it with a shirt in case someone were to see in her bag. “If Rainbow, Fluttershy, and Applejack are having the same dreams as me… maybe this will explain things better.”

“Twilight!” shouted her mother, scaring her stiff. “You’re going to be late.”

“Coming!” Twilight called as she grabbed her bag and raced down the stairs.

I can’t wait any longer. I have to do something about this.