Before the Friendship Games: Principal Cinch

by CapNTilfy

Unease

Abacus jerked upward with a gasp, realizing that she had fallen into a puddle. How undignified! She looked up to see a person in front of her.

Before the Headmistress stood a fairly tall light lavender woman with two-toned orange hair, partially hidden by her officer's cap. She raised her sunglasses slightly, revealing her baby blue eyes. The badge on her uniform read "Copper".

"Ma'am," Copper said in a gruff voice. "You okay?" She extended a hand in an offer for help.

Reluctantly, Abacus took the officer's hand, still stunned over her dream. "I... I don't quite know."

"Do you remember what happened before you lost consciousness?"

The Headmistress put a hand to her head and closed her eyes, then began to concentrate.

"S... B... I... U..."

"Dammit," she muttered under her breath, then increased her focusing.

"Ma'am?"

Abacus pinched the bridge of her nose with her other hand, then shushed Copper. The deputy blinked, then allowed the Headmistress another moment of silence.

Suddenly, everything came back to her. Her awakening from her first nightmare. Neighsay's call. Death. Death all around her.

Abacus gasped, then nearly fainted again.

"Ma'am?!" With lighting reflexes, Copper grabbed the Headmistress and held her up.

Abacus took a deep breath, then heaved a sigh. She paused, then told the officer everything that happened from the beginning of her day to the present moment.

Copper adjusted her sunglasses, astonished at the story. She stood still for a moment, then spoke. "Do you need me to call a hospital, ma'am?"

"Honestly, I think I just need to go home and have some peace and quiet."

The officer eyed Abacus with skepticism, then simply shrugged. "If you say so."

"Indeed I do."

"Well then... have a good rest of your day, ma'am..." Copper walked back to her car, then looked back, feeling unsure. She then got back into her patrol car, then drove off.

The Headmistress sighed deeply, then walked back to her car with a shudder. She had to get home as soon as possible. She needed to feel safe. Death was everywhere, and Abacus had to get to a safe haven! Then again, was anywhere safe from its clutches? At the very least, she'd feel safer at home than where she was now!

Abacus got into her car, then took a deep breath and exhaled. She felt calmer, but only marginally so. Still, it was better than nothing. With another exhale, the Headmistress started her car and made her way home.

----------------------------------------------

Once home, Abacus headed straight for the kitchen and started up a pot of chamomile tea. She shuddered as she sat down, still unnerved by her morning. What on earth had gotten into her?! She had always been calm, cool and collected, but now? Now she was a bundle of nerves! The Headmistress could not remember the last time she had felt so tense!

With a deep sigh, Abacus got up and took her tea. At the very least, she was grateful to no longer have the jitters as she picked the cup up and returned to her seat. With a sip, the Headmistress began to think rationally for the first time since she was at the cemetery.

Clearly she had experienced some sort of trauma, and she would have to deal with it as soon as possible. Especially since the Friendship Games were incoming! The last thing she needed was to be in a compromised mental state during a competition!

Abacus' first order of business would have to be identifying said trauma, but all she had to go on were static, the letters S, B, I and U... and a gunshot. She shuddered at the mere thought of that ghastly noise! But why? How long ago did this incident happen? She felt a headache coming on, then sighed heavily. Perhaps she should just spend the day relaxing. It wouldn't do for her to arrive at Crystal Prep Academy like this!

Relaxing... when was the last time the Headmistress even did that? It was not that she thought of relaxing as an activity for the weak, it was that she hardly gave herself a chance to do so! Relaxation was essential to refresh the mind, after all!

For the first time that day, Abacus allowed herself to smile. She may still have a trauma to deal with, but at least she now had a plan of action! And with that, she went about her day...

----------------------------------------------

The sun had begun to set, and Abacus sighed. She had spent the whole day drinking tea, meditating, listening to classical music and other relaxing activities. Perhaps she should do this sort of thing more often! Who knows what she could be capable of if she did so on a regular basis!

The Headmistress set that thought to the side as she prepared herself for bed. She began to feel wary, worried that she would suffer the same dream she'd been having lately. And yet, she also hoped for it. She needed to solve this quandary before it got any worse. It was bad enough that she was in such a wretched mental state earlier, but to have it happen at Crystal Prep? Simply unthinkable! Abacus would need a decent night's sleep, even after all the calming things she had done.

After much mental deliberation, the Headmistress decided on hoping for the nightmare to return. Uncomfortable as it was, it would be necessary to confront the problem head on. She reached her room, and took a deep breath, steeling herself for what was to come. With an exhale, she began to change into her pajamas.

I should look into books on lucid dreaming to increase my chances of solving this, Abacus thought. That would have to wait until tomorrow, however.

Once she was changed, the Headmistress turned on classical music, then closed her eyes. As she felt sleep take its hold on her, she felt a rush of fear and anticipation. Would she wake up the next day closer to the answers she sought out? Would she be back to square one?

The last thing she felt before surrendering to sleep was exhilaration.

Comments

[Frankie2]

First time I heard of someone wanting a nightmare.

[ScisetShimmerEvan]

Suddenly, everything came back to her. The her awakening from her first nightmare. Neighsay's call. Death. Death all around her.

Her awakening*