• Published 3rd Jan 2019
  • 1,899 Views, 244 Comments

The Tournament Of Friendship - FourShadow



Following the events that went down at CHS, the Rainbooms are struggling to change themselves for the better. And with the upcoming Friendship Games, it might give them ample opportunity to do so. But will it be enough?

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Chapter 5: Detention

Author's Note:

I have to thank Scholary-Cimmerian once again for his support on this chapter, he really helped me out a lot. Thanks for the help buddy :twilightsmile:

Anyways, we will be continuin' this story, and hopefully get into somethin' good. Enjoy!

The school day is over, the majority of the student body was clearing out their stuff, getting ready to get out and go home. All except for five particular students, of course. Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie – all of them weary, tired after another long day – reluctantly reported to detention. This was something that has varied over the weeks since sentencing. For the first few weeks it had been something simple like community service – namely, assisting in the repairs to damages done at school. Other days included picking up trash by the freeway, or planting new bushes and trees at the park; all done under police supervision.

Though the police supervision stung them hard. It sent the message, as much as everything else, to the Rainbooms, that they’re being treated like criminals. Like scum. The lowest of the lows.

Pinkie Pie suddenly spoke up, with some forced cheer in her voice. “Well, look at it this way – at least we’re not doing Sunset’s dirty work anymore, right?”

Silence. Just pure, awkward, silence. Fluttershy gave her a particularly nasty look.

Pinkie Pie drooped. “Just trying to lighten the mood a bit…”

The five girls filed into the room. Principal Luna and her sister, Vice-Principal Celestia, were waiting already.

“Ah, girls. Glad to see you’re here.

“Like we had a choice," Fluttershy muttered with some angst.

Vice-Principal Celestia gave her a piercing look, one that got her to shut up. Luna did audibly hear the backtalk, but she chose not to reply to it.

“Now then. Today you’ll be sorting through old records. Although we have electronic backups, the original paper system is important, and there has been something of a lapse in organization in previous years."

Celestia arched an eyebrow slightly. For their part, the Rainbooms look – and gape in shock or horror as they see, on the tables in the room, several large filing boxes, jammed to overflowing with folders and papers. It’s a nightmare of paperwork gone amok.

“You gotta be kidding…”

“No, Miss Dash, my sister is most certainly not joking. You and your friends are to organize and sort each and every one of those boxes, for however long it may take. And don’t think about doing a rush job either. Unless you’d all like to be put to straightening out the basement instead," Celestia replied with some stern.

There’s a flurry of assurances from the Rainbooms, that they WOULD do a good job and that there would be NO need to go anywhere near the basement.

“Well then, I’m glad to hear it.” The principal looked to her sister. "Sister, I think you can take over from here?”

“Of course, Luna.”

Luna nodded to her, and then departs. The Rainbooms look in despair at the boxes of files, and then, dejectedly, go over and begin the boring and arduous process of having to remove and reorganize all that paperwork. So much paper, so much to do.

The Rainbooms initially work in silence, for several minutes. Eventually, as the tedium of the work became familiar and the sorting turned into natural habit, a conversation finally begun to struck.

“How’re you comin’ along, Dash?”

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Ugh… slow. What’d you expect?”

Pinkie nodded. “Yeah! This is so BORING…”

“Detention isn’t a party, Miss Pie.” Vice-Principal Celestia replied.

“You can say that again…” Pinkie acknowledged, failing to detect the obvious sarcasm in Celestia's voice. Fluttershy rolled her eyes with a dark sigh.

The work continued for a bit in silence. No one talked. No one said a word, not that anyone really wanted to, with them under the conditions. Or at least anything that wouldn't get Celestia to intervene. Then finally, another conversation starts up again.

“So, um, did you hear about the tryouts for the Friendship Games?" Rainbow Dash asked, trying to break the silence.

Rarity scoffed. "No offense, Rainbow Dash, but I really don't follow that sporty nonsense the way you do."

"Ooh! I heard something! Apparently Lyra and Bon-Bon went crazy at their tryouts and they were in these bird costumes and screeching at each other!"

There was a pause as everyone, even Celestia who stepped out after their tryouts kept dragging on, processed this information.

"...Well now. That's somethin' all right."

Fluttershy bitterly mumbled. "That's one way of putting it."

Silence again, as the work continues. Then Pinkie Pie speaks up again.

"Hey..."

Rarity sighed slightly. "What is it, Pinkie?"

"...Did, uh, did any of you think about trying out for the Friendship Games?"

Silence greeted this news for a moment. Then, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy suddenly started to crack up laughing.

“That’s great, Pinkie! Really great! Us, trying out for the Games!”

Pinkie Pie wilted. Applejack glared at Dash and Shy, before deciding not to get involved in what would be an inevitable argument. Rarity however, decided to take up the slack, trying to be a little bit more diplomatic.

“Pinkie Pie. I’m sorry, but that idea is just completely not feasible. Not now, not ever…”

Pinkie's hair suddenly turned from light and poofy, suddenly deflating like a balloon. Her hair now wore limp and flat. When suddenly, to their surprise, Vice-Principal Celestia suddenly spoke up.

“It might not be that ridiculous an idea, Rainbow Dash.”

Surprised, the Rainbooms look at their strict vice-principal for saying such a thing. Then Rainbow Dash cracks up again.

“Oh man, that’s a good one, Vice-Principal Celestia! I can’t believe I thought you didn’t have a sense of humor!!”

There’s a shocked silence that falls, especially when Rainbow realizes what she just said to the strictest faculty member in the school. AJ facepalmed. Pinkie Pie's jaw dropped to the floor. Fluttershy had an evil smirk, just waiting for what kind of punishment that Rainbow was about to have. And Rarity cupped her jaw, realizing what she had just done.

Celestia gave Dash the evil eye for a moment, before she composed herself.

"Pinkie Pie may have an idea. You see, I've taken a look at the roster for those trying out for the games, only seven students have made it in. The rules require twelve students for each team. And seeing as how you five aren't doing anything else with your time..."

"Aw, come on, really? If we enter the games, the crowds are going to throw arrows at us!" Rainbow complained.

"Or pies," Rarity quivered.

"Or attack us even further," Fluttershy scowled.

"Maybe so, but think about this. You five don't want to stay on Sunset Shimmer's path anymore, do you?"

All five of them shook their heads vigorously.

"Then perhaps you can approach the games with the idea that maybe you can be better people. It will take some time, but at least, maybe, just maybe, you five will finally make some real friendships here. Maybe even some new friends from Crystal Prep Academy."

Rainbow Dash was skeptical. "Uh, no offense, but are you sure this is going to make us better?"

"Maybe it will. Maybe it won't. But you should at least try. All of you. And I know you five are skilled enough for it." Celestia paused for a moment, a small devious thought entered her head. "That is... if you five think you can actually win."

Rainbow's head jolted up. "You don't think we can win, do you?"

"Oh no," Applejack shook her head.

"She's going there..."

"Well think about this, Vice-Principal Celestia! We will do good at the games, and I know we will win!"

Vice-Principal Celestia smirked. "That's what I thought, Rainbow Dash. My thoughts exactly. Now I'm going to step out for a brief moment, but you girls better not be thinking about leaving."

Soon as she stepped out, Rainbow Dash smirked. A little bit of pride beamed for once in that dark and gray skies.

"You realize what you just said, right?" Fluttershy raised a brow.

"Yeah, I know! We're going to enter the Friendship Games and be the most awesome competitors ever! ... She tricked me, didn't she?" Rainbow drooped.

"Yep."

"Yep."

"Hook, line, and sinker."


After another day’s detention, Pinkie Pie is at her house. Between homework and chores, it’s not until after dinner that she gets up to her room. Her pink hair, drooping, perks up as she comes inside. Very colorful and childish, albeit little schizophrenic with some of the “tough band” stuff from her Rainboom villain days. A blend of both worlds together.

"Gummyyy! I’m hooome!”

She went over to a good-sized terrarium on the desk, her prior sadness and exhaustion melting away as she looks at the contents of said tank. Inside, resting on a rock, is a small little alligator. A small baby alligator completely green, but what stood out the most was the strange purple eyes that just stared blankly out into space.

“Did you miss me?” Pinkie squeaked.

The gator’s large eyes blinked once.

"Aww! I missed you too!”

Carefully, she reached into the terrarium and scooped up the reptile, who was oddly sedate about it. Holding him on the palm of one hand, Pinkie strokes his back with the finger of her other hand.

Pinkie sighed as she stroked his back. “You know, Gummy, some days I just don’t know… I’m happy that Sunset’s in jail, and that she’s not in charge anymore. But… I don’t know… I thought that things would be better than they are now.”

The gator wiggled in her grip. Pinkie, apparently reading this gesture, gently turns him over in her grip and began to stroke his belly. The gator’s jaws open slightly and he chirps in contentment.

“I don’t know. I just thought that things might get better. That once we said sorry, and that we didn’t want to do all those awful things, that we might be able to be happy again… but that’s not what happened at all…”

Her face fells into a frown. “Everybody hates us, Gummy. Everybody. I mean, I don’t blame them for being mad at us, but – but it just hurts, seeing it. How people look at us, look at me. They think we’re as bad as Sunset was… and, and that can’t be right!”

Her belly-rubbing has stopped, and she held up the baby gator to her face, to look him in the eyes. “Am I a bad person, Gummy?”

The gator, of course, said nothing. Water dripped from his tail onto the floor, and he blinked again.

“I just don’t know… I’m just glad that I have you.”

She hugs the reptile to her, gently. Gummy doesn’t move, this is something he’s familiar with in the time of being her pet. Pinkie takes him and puts him back in his terrarium on his rock.

“Thanks, Gummy.”

The gator blinks.

“I’ll get ya some food now. Got some nice crickets from the bait shop that Fluttershy told me about…”

She bustled off to get the box of bait. All the while, Gummy the gator sat peacefully on his rock, at ease with the world.