Before the Friendship Games: Principal Cinch

by CapNTilfy

Sanctuary

Abacus arrived at her office, feeling no better than she did when she passed the graveyard. She felt as though all the paperwork and distractions in the world would not get her mind off of her choice.

"How could you?"

The Headmistress sighed heavily. Never mind finding an heir after the Friendship Games, she'd need a psychiatrist! With another sigh, she sat at her desk and simply stared at her paperwork.

"How could you?"

Abacus muttered in frustration as she put a hand to her head. The paperwork wasn't going to do itself...

---

As the day went on, Abacus found herself getting restless. Perhaps she should take a break and get out of the office. Some fresh air to renew the mind, body and soul. She rarely ever took breaks unless they were absolutely necessary.

"How could you?"

That tore it. The Headmistress rose from her desk, then headed to the teacher's lounge to get some coffee. A breath of fresh air it was, then. She walked the halls, making note of the hostile expressions of each student she passed by. Abacus smiled. Those expressions. Anger, frustration, contempt... all negative feelings that could secure victory when properly channeled.

It was all thanks to the mentality that the Headmistress had spent years instilling into the student body. The mentality that the one thing that mattered was being the best. Love and friendship could only get one so far in life, after all. To her, those were nothing more than distractions. Why, those very same "friends" or "lovers" could even be plotting one's downfall! Waiting for the right moment to strike when one's guard was down!

It was for those reasons that Abacus had kept to herself most of her life. She had learned it from watching her father's cutthroat criminal empire. As a child, she had witnessed endless competition between his lackeys and minions. Constant aggression, undermining each other at every turn... The Headmistress sighed. Those were memories that would stay with her for the rest of her life.

Abacus reached the Teacher's Lounge and opened the door. She noticed it was empty, and she sighed in relief. The Headmistress was never one for pleasantries, and she considered idle conversation a waste of her valuable time. Time that could be spent keeping Crystal Prep Academy at the top.

With coffee in hand, Abacus left the lounge.

---

Abacus exited the school, then took a deep breath and exhaled. The sun was shining, nearly producing a glare in her glasses. A warm breeze blew by as a riding mower cut the grass near the school's parking lot. It was rather peaceful out, and it helped to clear the Headmistress' mind.

"How could you?"

Abacus sighed heavily as she put a hand to her forehead. This was absurd! Why was all of this nonsense happening to her? She had always been of sound mind and body until recently. With a sip of coffee, she shook her head slowly. Why did she have to suffer so?

The Headmistress snorted. What sort of mentality was that, making herself sound like a victim? She had always been the predator, not the prey!

...But then why was she always the latter in her dreams? Surely she had the mental fortitude to be able to overcome those horrendous nightmares.

"Any..."

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

There had to be some meaning behind that word and those letters! Perhaps the nightmares would end once she got to the bottom of this madness.

Abacus checked the time on her phone and heaved another sigh. She would have to go back inside to her office. Maybe she'd spend some extra time outside before turning in for the night. Finishing the last of the coffee, the Headmistress threw the cup into a garbage bin and returned to the halls of Crystal Prep.

Upon reaching her office, Abacus decided a slight change was in order. With a crack of her neck, she opened her office windows just a crack so some fresh air could flow through the room. A little bit of background noise never hurt, after all.

As the day went by, the sounds of birds chirping and cars passing reached Abacus' ears, only slightly distracting her. For once, she did not seem to mind. Rarely did she ever pay attention to more than one thing at a time, but doing so now had felt more fulfilling than normal!

"How could you?"

"Any..."

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

The Headmistress winced. Couldn't she have just one damned moment of peace? Was that too much to ask? She pounded a fist on her desk in frustration. "Damn it all," she muttered. She'd just have to power through it... again.

---

By the time the work day was over, Abacus had heard the same three things more times than she cared to count. As she got out of her car upon reaching home.

"How could you?"

"Any..."

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

What made it all the worse was that she knew she'd hear at least two of those endlessly when she fell asleep. Being driven to the brink of madness and despair, feeling powerless and helpless. Abacus wasn't going to fool herself. No matter what she'd tried, the nightmares would always return to her.

Suddenly, a thought occurred to the Headmistress. With each nightmare, there was less and less static. Why, there was even solid ground in her previous dream! She smiled a little, feeling better about herself. Lesser people would surely have cracked under the insanity of it all, but not her! She was strong!

And yet, she dreaded the thought of that damnable static void as she headed to her backyard for some more fresh air.

---

Some time later, Abacus went inside for the night. As... concerned as she was about the dream, she was also curious. She wanted to know what it all meant. She changed into her pajamas and turned her bedroom light off. As she drifted off to sleep, she wondered.

Once I find everything out, will it make things better...

...or worse?

Comments

[ScisetShimmerEvan]

That tore it. The Headmistress got rose from her desk, then headed to the teacher's lounge to get some coffee. A breath of fresh air it was, then. She walked the halls, making note of the hostile expressions of each student she passed by. Abacus smiled. Those expressions. Anger, frustration, contempt... all negative feelings that could secure victory when properly channeled.

rose from her desk*
Saying 'got rose from her desk' makes no sense/doesn't match the sentence imo.

It was all thanks to the mentality that the Headmistress had spent years instilling into the student body. The mentality that the one thing that mattered was being the best. Love and friendship could only get one so far in life, after all. To her, those were nothing more than distractions. Why, those very same "friends" or "lovers" could even be plotting one's downfall! Waiting for the right moment to strike when one's guard was down!

There's something to piss off Princess Twilight.

By the time the work day was over, Abacus had heard the same three things more times than she cared to count. As she got out of her car upon reaching home

home.*

...or worse?

Only one way to find out.