Like a Phoenix

by Pyro Kittens In Suits

Finding Your Family

“Find my family.” Sunset whispered to herself.

The everlooming door of both Princess Celestia stood in front of her like a closed castle gate. Though she had been called into the office in the past a number of times, this time was different than the regretful days long behind her. She had reason to visit the semi - ruler of the school now, and it twisted Sunset’s stomach to think of facing the alternate version of her once benevolent teacher.

“You sure you don’t want us to come in with you?”

Sunset smiled at her friends, Dawn and Wallflower sharing concerned looks as they were given front seats to her show of anxiety of talking to the principal.

“We could just sit by you while you talk.” Wallflower suggested, Dawn giving a small nod in agreement. “We won’t say anything if you don’t want us to, we can just be there for comfort.”

“No,” Sunset quietly disagreed. “I need to face my fears on this, I need to be able to face the mirror image of one of my greatest past mistakes.” She took another deep breath, putting on a sad smile as she turned to the two. “Thank you guys for walking me here, but I’m the one who needs to do this.”

And without letting herself think twice, Sunset pushed her way through the unlocked door. The first face she spotted was Celestia’s secretary, a Miss Inkwell, whom looked up with a surprised expression as she realized who had entered.

“Miss Sunset Shimmer.” She said with a even voice, adjusting her glasses. “Are you here to see Principal Celestia?”

“Y-yes.” Sunset stuttered, talking before she could rethink her choice. “Is she available?”

“She just finished talking with Vice Principal Luna just a few minutes ago, she should be in her office now. Shall I tell her you’re here to see her?”

“Yes, please.”

“Alright, just give me a moment.”

Lifting up from her desk, Ms. Inkwell walked over to the doorway behind her, knocking twice before sticking her head inside. Sunset heard the surprise in Principal Celestia’s voice as her presence was announced, but managed to calm her tone as she informed her secretary to allow her inside.

“Principal Celestia will see you now.”

Sunset braced herself again, sneaking a quick breather before swinging herself forward and into Celestia’s office.

“Sunset.” Principal Celestia’s voice was soft, her eyes showing concern as she looked over her student, likely in search of any signs of a problem. “How are you?”

“Fine.” Sunset partly lied, for what she planned to discuss her current feelings would have to take a temporary backseat. “Do you have some time to talk?”

“Of course,” Celestia replied. “Please, take a seat and we can start.”

Moving over from the doorway and uncomfortably shifting into her seat, she stared straight at her principal with as much determination as she could muster.

“I’m not Anon - a - Miss,” Sunset began, Celestia not even showing the faintest sign of shock at the statement. “But whomever is, is trying to ruin my reputation here at Canterlot High. I have been bullied in the hallways, called appalling names both to my face and online, and have constantly faced harassment through the past weeks. And I need you to start taking this seriously.”

Celestia raised any eyebrow but didn’t change her neutral visage otherwise.

“I have already increased security around the school, both Vice Principal Luna and I have been doing routine patrols around the halls to discourage fighting. This gossip blog on Mystable is something Luna and I have little control over, as it is outside of school boundaries-”

“You can still be doing more.” Sunset interrupted, cringing slightly as she realized she was beginning yell. “This situation is turning into a soon to be full out war between the students, even if what the students are doing is technically outside of school authority it’s still your job to at least protect them from each other. It’s what a ruler does for her subjec-” Sunset paused before correcting herself. “It’s what a principal is supposed to do for her students.”

Celestia took a moment to consider her words, taking a in a deep sigh before talking.

“Perhaps you are right,” She said, sounding almost disappointed in herself. “This Anon - a - Miss has gone far enough. And even if I cannot personally stop them myself, the least I can do is ensure that the students know how to properly behave themselves.”

Before Sunset could reply, Celestia reached over to the intercom system as she pushed to power the mic.

“Attention students, this is Principal Celestia with an a important announcement.”

Whatever noise went on in the Canterlot High halls suddenly went silent, the various students now attentive to their Principal’s calm voice.

“In recent light of these Anon - a - Miss events, any physical fighting and physical harassment of any students will be met with a no tolerance policy.”

Though Sunset couldn’t see his face, she knew somewhere Hoops had tensed up considerably.

“Furthermore, any student’s having proven to submit any gossip to the Mystable blog will be given harsh punishment. But if you are to turn yourself in I can ensure you the consequences will be far lighter than if I, or Vice Principal Luna are to find out through other means. This is your first and last warning, so I encourage all students of Canterlot High begin behaving themselves. Thank you, and I wish you the best on your exams.”

Removing her hand from the intercom, Principal Celestia leaned back into her seat before addressing Sunset.

“I must apologise,” She said, looking at her student with feint regret. “Luna and I both had been concerned with the growing agitation between your classmates, but we were unsure of how to proceed with it. I can see now that taking inaction is no better than adding to the problem. A lesson I had hoped to learn enough of in the past.”

She looked over at the fiery haired girl with a serious gaze, hands on her desk as she lightly leaned over.

“If anyone in this school is to hurt you at all, please do not hesitate to contact me or my sister. For all that’s happened here to you, we both want the absolute best to help you recover.”

It took a moment before Sunset could respond, stunned by the response that her passionate criticism had elicited.

“I - thank you, Principal Celestia.” She said as she managed to gather up her thoughts. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.”

“Thank you, Sunset.” Her mirror mentor replied. “Is there anything else you would like to discuss? Because I believe Luna and I will be having a long talk about finally ending this Anon - a - Miss issue once and for all.”

Considering opening up the long since buried issue with having her principal appear so much liker her once scorned mentor, Sunset hurriedly decided against the idea and appointed it for another day. Yet there was something else she needed to ask, something for herself.

“Just one more thing, this school has a guidance counselor, right?”

~*~

Wallflower and Dawn had both remained in the same place Sunset had left them. The two talking to each other in hushed voices before their eyes snapped to the sudden sound of the office door swinging open. The both of them trying their best to casually walk over to their friend, though failing as they swarmed her with questions.

“We heard the announcement,” Dawn started first. “Is everything alright? Are you alright? How did it go?”

“It sounds like it went okay,” Wallflower began next. “Was Principal Celestia understanding? Was Vice Principal Luna there as well? They believed you when you said it wasn’t you, right?”

Taking a small step back, Sunset looked at the two with a kind smile.

“I’m alright,” She assured them first. “It was only Principal Celestia, but I think she never suspected it was me that started the blog in the first place. She told me Luna and her will be doing everything they can to finally put an end to this Anon - a - Miss.”

Her two companions released breaths that neither had realized they had been holding, both grinning with relief as they expressed their happiness for their friend.

“I’m happy, too.” Sunset said, interjecting the cheers of the other two. “But could I ask something of you girls?”

“Of course.”

“Go ahead.”

“Can you both wait for me after school today in our spot?” Sunset asked. “I have something very important things to do at lunch, and it might take me awhile before I can talk to you again.”

~*~

It had been to easy enough to spot Vinyl Scratch, the DJ’s neon accents made her stand out even in some of the more colorful crowds. Not to mention the sounds of electronic beats resounded from her everywhere she went, if sight was an issue all you had to do was listen.

That is how Sunset managed to find her moving through the halls as if she were part of a music video. Her arms motioning to muffled music from her headphones, while still keeping a eye out for either principals in previous history of having her precious equipment temporarily confiscated.

“Vinyl!” Sunset tried to yell as softly as she could, enough to gather the girl’s attention without alerting the whole school to her whereabouts.

Though she was concerned she hadn’t been loud enough, she was thankfully proven wrong as the musician stopped her impromptu movements, reaching to remove her headset before waving to acknowledge her.

“Vinyl, I want to give you something.” Sunset said, reaching into her bag and pulling out a CD case, a decorated disc inside labeled, “For Vinyl Scratch.” She motioned for the DJ to take the present, whom in turn looked curiously at the item as she took it, before turning back to Sunset.

“It’s a collection of music I’ve listened to over the years I’ve been here.” Sunset explained. “I wanted to give it to you as thanks for the other day, your music has been helping me a lot lately and I wanted to express my gratitude.”

Vinyl moved her eyes to inspect the disc further, before happily smiling as she gave a Sunset a thumbs up in thanks. Putting the case into her bag, she replaced her headphones back to their original position and waved to Sunset with a big grin.

Sunset waved in response, happy that Vinyl enjoyed the sentiment at the very least, and watched the DJ maneuver down the hall and around the corner.

~*~

Ditzy Doo had been increasingly difficult to track down, as the bubbly girl never seemed to stay in one place for long. Sunset rounded the halls for what seemed like the fourth time before she was granted a hint of blonde hair near an opened locker.

“Ditzy!” Sunset called out, a pair of misaligned eyes lighting up at the sound of the name.

“Hi, Sunset.” The cheerful girl beamed back. “Do you need something?”

“I’ve been wanting to properly thank you for what you’ve been doing for me,” Sunset said, quickly continuing before Derpy could argue against the need for gratitude. “I don’t have much in terms of thanks, but I thought this might suffice.”

Opening the small box she cradled in her hands, Ditzy’s face lit up as she saw the few slightly malformed cupcakes, decorated in her favorite shade of blue. The frosting, while moderately splattered, aligned to spell out the words, “Thank you!” in careful yellow writing.

“I was able to work on these during study hall in the kitchen,” Sunset carefully lied, in reality she had snuck into the room at night while taking just enough ingredients that hopefully would not be missed. It wasn’t as if she had done so before in the past.

“Oooh,” Ditzy’s smile grew bigger as she excitedly expressed her delight, her eyes watering faintly. “Thank you, Sunset!”

She took the box carefully, using one arm to hold it close while her free hand tugged Sunset into a side hug. The other student unsure of the intimate contact at first, but quickly melting into the embrace and returning the gesture. She checked another box off her mental checklist, and hastily said her goodbyes to Ditzy before pacing off to finish the rest of her agenda.

~*~

Trixie was thankfully considerably easier to spot, though usually her wizard attire was too flashy even for the school’s lax dress codes, spotting the student with the flashy silver hair and starry attire was simple enough. Waving goodbye to her two band members,she turned and spotted Sunset from the further end of the hall.

“Sunset,” She happily said, before lightly coughing and reverting back to her haughty personality. “What do you have need of me for now?”

“I wanted to ask you something.” Sunset said, stepping closer to the magician. “I was wondering if you ever wanted to join my friends and I at the Sweet Shoppe for lunch, when you have a moment.”

“Really?” Trixie excitedly said, before once again catching her demeanor, toning down her interest. “I - I mean, perhaps. If I can ever seem to find the time.”

“Alright,” Sunset said, smiling amusedly at her. “If you ever have the chance, I’ll be around.”

As she turned to walk away, having one more task to achieve, though it was unfortunately after the nightmare that was gym class, she heard the telltale signs of Trixie’s voice give out a happy giggle. Throwing out a entertained sigh herself, Sunset continued on towards the locker rooms.

~*~

While usually she had always chosen to change into the appropriate school gym uniform in secrecy, Sunset dared herself to remain in the sidelines of the locker room to dress. And while she remained uneasy with the glare she retrieved from Anon - a - Miss scorned students, she knew the more she hid herself away the further her tormentors would push her in seeing her falter. But it didn’t exactly help matters that when she was only half way through putting her clothes on, Gilda had came to stand a few paces away to dress herself.

Trying to quickly finish throwing the rest of her outfit on, while also doing her best to appear as if she wasn’t rushing to do so, Sunset took a side glance at Gilda. While the taller girl had once again continued to ignore her presence, she realized that when the student had turned around to seat herself on the bench to tie her shoes, her face became a scowling stare as she looked at the other girls in the room. All of which hurried to ogle elsewhere, tearing their angry eyes away from Sunset.

Despite her previous concerns about being subjected to a space filled with agitated students, Sunset found herself smirking as she realized Gilda must have purposely positioned herself near her. Or at least she would like to think that.

“Hey, Gilda?” Sunset braved a hushed voice.

The other girl not bothering to turn her attention away from her shoelaces, but giving a indifferent “Yeah?” in response.

“Thanks.”

If Gilda had heard Sunset, she surely didn’t show it as she finished up her shoes as she stood to stretch, trudging out of the locker room at last. Completing her own laces, and ignoring the other students side eyes as she trekked into the gym, Sunset worked through the class with a renewed sense of enthusiasm.

~*~

“Sunset?”

“Suuunnseet!”

Nearly jumping at the sudden voices, Sunset turned to spot Wallflower and Dawn approach the garden. She waved them over, calling out their names as they saw her, the two careful not to slip over the frosty grass as they ran to see her.

“Sorry I couldn’t be with you two at lunch today,” Sunset said, walking over to meet her friends as they looked at her with a mix of concern and curiosity. “But I had some things I wanted to do, something I want to tell you both.”

Turning to grab something on the bench, careful to use her figure to block the object as not to ruin the surprise, Sunset carefully held the potted bonsai tree in her hands before returning to face the others.

“I’ve decided to join the Gardening club, if you’ll have me that is.”

It was a moment of tense silence, before Wallflower broke out into a unbearably happy grin as she moved to tightly hug her newest member.

“Y - You are?” She said excitedly.

“Of course.” Sunset replied, still holding tightly onto the plant in fear of it falling from her hands.

“Oh this is so amazing!” Wallflower said, breaking away from the embrace as she walked further into the enclave motioning her hands around the space. “We already have three members so far, and I can just see all the plants we’ll be able to grow. And even -.”

The girl was swiftly wrapped up in her thoughts as she planned for the new spring season, estimating the layout as she continued talking to the two behind her.

“Hey, Dawn?” Sunset whispered, as not to interrupt Wallflower’s enthusiastic organization.

“Yes?”

“Do you and Candy have some time later today? There’s something I want to talk to the two of you about.”

“Sure, Sunset.” Dawn responded, before turning her attention back to their mutual friend. “But maybe we should calm Wallflower down, just enough so we can manage to drag her back to school tomorrow.”

Sunset quietly laughed before shifting back to nod at her gardening friend’s suggestions of marigolds and sage bushes.

Comments

[Ri2]

Wait. WAIT. The school has a guidance counselor?!

[Golden Fang Ryu Shenron]

Wow had no idea CHS has a guidance counselor!

“Sure, Sunset.” Dawn responded, before turning her attention back to their mutual friend. “But maybe we should calm Wallflower down, just enough so we can manage to drag her back to school tomorrow.”

!

[KittyrinnAiko]

At what point does she tell anyone she is homeless.

[Asriel-Dreemurr]

9712248
Who are you talking to?

[KittyrinnAiko]

9996468
I suppose anyone with an answer. Though to be true, it's been several months since I read this and it's muddled up with all the other stories I've read since.