This story is a sequel to Dripfeed
Low-pressure systems typically warn of cloudy, possibly stormy, weather to come. A simple warning, but one that has proven true time and time again. If the pressure starts dropping, it would be wise to prepare for storms.
Storms warned Thunderlane of the attack of the strange beasts that have been haunting Cloudsdale for the past weeks. Another simple warning, but one that seems to have proven itself; the beasts have only ever been seen in the rain, and the drumming of the rain was the drum to whose beat they marched on Thunderlane's camp. If storms arrive and you're in Cloudsdale, it seems to be wise to prepare for an encounter with the beasts, what some have begun calling Trogs.
Isolated scouts followed by a stronger attack typically warn of plans for an invasion. A less simple warning, but one that has proven itself time and time again. Isolated scouts have plagued Cloudsdale for the past weeks, and now news of a larger attack has reached Windy Hill. Now, Applejack, Fluttershy, and the unveiled Platinum Brilliance believe it wise to prepare for war.
Continuity: The Song of the Spheres
Branch: The Children of the Storm
Someone needs to smack Discount Denethor upside the head before he makes a bigger mess of things.
Wait, Clear Sky and Wind Sprint? PLEASE tell me we get to meet Quibble Pants. You have NO IDEA how much I need this.
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I wasn't planning for Quibble to show up, just like I wasn't planning for Tein to be so pleasant, or for the Castellot riot to go as it did. We shall have to see whether he decides to show up or not, both readers and author.
Also, yes, someone please give the unholy homunculus of the "You have no power here" meme and John Noble's most notable fruit-consuming role a good-sized thwack.
10885967
One richly-deserved thwacking, coming right up.
i.pinimg.com/originals/a0/cb/d6/a0cbd652e879d2401f0a6703ea87b845.gif
Be honest, you either laughed or squealed in delight when you first saw that.
10886009
Tbh, my first thought was, "I don't remember that," shortly followed by, "Wow, Gandalf's got some moves."
But, yes, fully deserved.
Good old Fluttershy, silk hiding steel.
10889204
You just made Quibble Pants make me cry. Well played, Ranger. I hope he's okay.
Ah,
Rainbow DashPlatinum Brilliance. She became the mask, and now she's starting to assimilate its strengths into her own being. Character growth is a wonderful thing.10898143
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Jokes aside, I loved writing the Quibble bit. Also, don't worry;
He is, though whether that's because he's staying somewhere safe or because he's off on a Flashman-esque adventure of his own is still up in the air.
It is, isn't it?
Whoops, definitely didn't mean to let this one slip by the wayside. Well, better late than never.
Fine, Wind Rider thinks they're all doomed and hope is a lie. But he's decided to let his entire state die weeping in their beds than standing and fighting. That may be a bigger source of shame than refusing to believe victory is possible. Still, getting him to do anything will be hard. And I can't help but notice Clear Sky never actually said his daughter's name...
It is fascinating to see both Platinum and Fluttershy change on their home ground, the friendly masks they wore at CHS removed by choice or by force. (Still feels really weird to have Middle-Earth abut a modern high school, but that's a different matter.) Applejack and I will both have to adapt to the shifts in what we thought we knew.
And, of course, there's the brewing storm. We'll see what happens when the skies finally do open up.
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An author is never late, nor are they early; they arrive precisely when they mean to.
Anyway, with regards to Wind Rider, yeah he's gonna be a stick in the mud. He has his reasons, though, however warped they might be, and one of them may not seem that way at all. Also, good catch on Clear Sky not naming his daughter. I can confirm that that was not a coincidence, though nothing more at the moment.
Yeah, I understand. Most of the problem is just how deeply the headcanon of "Cloudsdale's an amalgamation of Middle-Earth's Rohan, ASoIaF's North, and the Scottish Highlands" is ingrained in my mind, but part of it is due to the specific circumstances of the state at the time of the story; if it weren't for the weird weather, they'd be about as internet-savvy as somewhere like Virginia or Wyoming, and electrification is under way, but for various reasons (namely lack of capital, the unique challenges of the landscape, and the remnants of Cinch's influence) modern infrastructure (internet/cell service, automobile access, electricity) is really hindered in its development. Cloudsdale is basically a high-magic, horse-rearing/ranching instead of farming, version of the stereotypical "left-behind" rural community. I do understand your concerns, though, and I'll try to keep them in mind going forward. I'm just not sure if I'll be able to do anymore than Wind Rider thinks he is.
How many stories are going to be in this series?
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Hard to say. I'd estimate we're about 1/3 of the way through the series, but it's not set in stone.
Truer words have never been spoken within these halls.
Also, your story of Storm almost reminds me of a cross between Helm Hammerhand and King Elendil. Hmm, "Helmendil"?
10913380
Hm, Helm was a heavy inspiration for Storm's story (originally, she would've just been a Hammerhand copy), but I can see where you got Elendil out of it.
Very nice stuff exploring Applejack's traditions and insecurities.
"Ain't that only three roles?"
"Well, it's more like warriors, warriors, warriors, knights, and leaders."
"Oh."
Ah. I get the feeling that we're already familiar with the forces behind the Wolf-Men.
Bulk and Octavia? There's a novel pairing.
Yeah, probably best to send everyone to the mystically protected fortress given the nature of the enemy. Of course, that does little good against Governor Doom-and-Gloom. This is going to be an exceedingly awkward dinner...
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This made me smile.
I remember there being something about it in one of the later episodes, and in my headcanon I could see it working, so why not?
Amusing, isn't it? The biggest threat isn't the magic monsters at the door, it's the mundane foot-draggers who don't want to make the sacrifices needed to prepare for them.
Little Nighty... Night Rider? Really?
I can only imagine what her car's like.
Well, that raises some interesting questions.
"Beggin' yer pardon, sir, but we ain't exactly in a state of peace."
"Don't you kids know not to interrupt a good melancholy monologue? I thought Celestia would teach you better."
Fascinating tidbit with the ring. Once again, we have some very curious questions. Likewise with that dream. I get the feeling that it wasn't meant for Applejack.
An unexpected break point here. We've got further context and information, plus a runner en route to Castellot, but nothing's resolved. We'll see here it goes from here.
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I have MANY questions. And I fully expect that the answers will only beget more questions. At least, that's what I'm used to in the world of science.
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Close, but not quite; her "last name" and her family name aren't the same (like Lady Misty Fly of House Mist). Your guess is very, very close to her real name, though.
IMO, good worldbuilding should raise more questions than it answers, though the new questions should be less significant than the old ones.
Aside from the current crisis in Cloudsdale, Homestria (seems to be) at peace; he's talking about the broader picture here, before going into the specific counterexample you mentioned.
I can neither confirm nor deny that.
It's going to be a while before stuff other than personal issues gets resolved, be warned. It took Frodo a long time to get the Ring to Mount Doom, after all (or even to Rivendell). But the pace should pick up relatively soon, at which point it's probably going to seem to spiral out of control.
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Oh. Oh. Yeah, that would explain why she fell off the radar. You don't get much more elite than a state governor; no doubt her new friends encouraged her to cut off all ties with her old life.
So those things only use nets and tridents? One of the sides need to upgrade their arsenal.
You also lack the fire power.
Fluttershy, I know that you’re the element of kindness, but can you think about what you just said?
Is it bad that I would accept that offer? If I have magic all I need is some armor and weapons and I’m all good to go.
What does her heritage have to do with what he said?
Is he working for the enemy? If this is wind rider’s human counterpart then it may make sense.
I just realized, do any of them know how to fight?
What is this for?
Alien intelligence?
How does she know shining armor?
Special moves?
How old is she?
That is so weird to read.
What advice did she get?
Those are territories?
So you mean to tell me no one knows?
Honestly, I can’t really blame her, but I can blame her for not being more sneaky.
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At least the Men among them also use whips, and I don't think Cloudsdale needs anything worse to worry about right now.
Cloudsdale is famous for its militancy; if Wind Rider gave the order to fight, a tenth of the state, at least, would answer him.
Nah, it's perfectly understandable. I mean, you'd be overwhelmed pretty quickly, but it's better to keep hope, however slim, and fight than give up all hope and simply let tyranny win.
It might be a bit hard to tell, but he was referring to Fluttershy here.
It is, and we shall have to see.
AJ can throw a punch, Platinum's picked up a few tricks from all her sports, and Fluttershy knows some self-defense, but none of them are trained fighters, no.
Near the beginning, there's an asterisk, which this is a footnote for.
"Alien" in the sense of other, unknown, not extraterrestrial. I'll try to clarify that, thanks for pointing it out.
In this continuity, Shining is Captain of the Royal Guard, basically the equivalent of the United States' Secretary of Defense. While the Royal Guard is more of a police force than an army (hence why they seem incompetent against most of the threats the Mane 6 face), that does still give Shining the occasional opportunity to prove his valor and skill. He's a minor celebrity, basically, especially to someone as interested in the Guard as Wind Sprint.
Nothing fancy or flashy, just the techniques they're trained to use in their line of work, like disarming strikes.
About Apple Bloom's age (~12-13).
Any particular reason why?
Quite a bit, but the gist of it was "keep an eye on your teammates, not just yourself." (The My Little Pony Annual 2013.)
What Soarin's saying is that Wind Sprint's dad worked in the area under the jurisdiction of House Showers, while he stayed near the city of Skyspear, the ancestral home of House Skies, his family's house. Because Skyspear's in the northern half of the state and House Showers' lands are in the southern half, Soarin was too far away from Wind Sprint's dad's workplace to have encountered him.
Only Clear Sky knows Wind Sprint's dad's name, and like Soarin said, it's too painful for her to talk about.
I can't blame her either, but I would personally say that your conclusion is the exact opposite of the one that the debacle on the journey to Windy Hill should have taught you. AJ tried to be sneaky by eavesdropping on Platinum's and Fluttershy's conversation, and by talking with Soarin, but in the end it backfired; it took Platinum gathering up the courage to come clean for AJ to learn everything, her attempts at investigating secretly coming back to haunt her. This isn't to say shout whatever you're doing at the top of your lungs, but it is to say that secrecy isn't a cure-all; if you need to, investigate in secret, but first try being honest with the person you're investigating. Trying to sneak out the information you're looking for first might allow you to circumvent your quarry entirely, or it might end up harming you a lot more than simply talking to them would. Yes, AJ could've been more sneaky, but in the end...
Honesty's not just an Element because it's morally better than lying, but because it actually works better. Being completely honest with Platinum and Fluttershy might have avoided the crisis in their friendship, or at least help mitigate it; being sneakier would've just made the betrayal that much worse when (not if, when; someone always makes a mistakes, someone always tells) Platinum and Fluttershy learned what she was doing.
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So they don’t have guns or anything?
I meant that she said they faced threats almost as great, but doesn’t almost make a big difference?
Honestly, it depends on how many there are and what my magic is.
So her heritage is based on being pansy?
What about the other members of the rainbooms?
So it’s like a way of showing you where the author’s note comes into play?
I almost thought there was an alien spy.
So she is 12 or 13 editing a three page paper?
Because it’s rainbow/platinum saying it. You know, the one that hates study, school work, or anything that involves writing or using her brain.
Is that some sort of comic?
That’s one crazy analysis.
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Neither side has developed guns. Homestrian military technology is focused on preventing deaths, not inflicting them.
Ah, good point. Yes, almost can make a world of difference; whether it will here remains to be seen.
She's a member of House Flutter of Rainbow Vale, a region where the descendants of Private Petunia Pansy primarily live. The line of descent is not clearly direct as it is for some of the other houses (House Rider can trace its lineage straight back to Commander Hurricane), but the nearby presence of the great houses founded by Pansy's children (Prism, Showers, Skies, and Storm) makes it likely that they are at least indirectly related to her.
Rarity's showed her fighting skills already in The First Fall Revolution, Pinkie is Pinkie, Twilight's not very skilled in combat, and Sunset knows a thing or two from her time on the seedier side of Crystal City.
More a way of letting the reader know what the story's talking about without having to use an author's note.
Nah. The alien comes later.
More giving it a once-over for her mom, but yeah.
But was that her true self or merely her doing what she thought the mask would do?
Yes.
You know, it's kind of funny; I basically came up with it on the fly, but it's really something that seems to connect all the different branches in this story. Gaea kept information from Wallflower, possibly distracting or even turning her away from her mission, Minister Chip dug into Sunset's past without talking to her, causing trouble there, and AJ tried to sneak information about Platinum without her or Fluttershy learning about it, which almost broke the party. So many characters in this could've been well-served by being told, "You know, maybe being honest with this person is the best way to go."
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Well, that may suck for them.
My faith in the rainbooms winning this has decreased, drastically.
I guess that kinda makes sense.
Poor girl
Honestly, I don’t know anymore. This identity crisis situation she’s having is too much for my brain right now.
Haven’t read it
Yo, your brain works ten times faster than mine.
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It has its good and bad points, though the bad points are more pronounced now, yes.
Yeah, the chance of them winning has to be somewhere in the region of a million to one.
It's not that bad, just not what she'd prefer to spend her time doing (practicing to get into the Guard when she's older).
S'alright, neither have I. (Wiki summaries are wonderful things.)
Aw, thanks for the kind words!
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I was thinking a billion to one, but I guess I can be generous.
That makes sense.
If you were able to come up with that on the fly, then you deserve them.
Who’s gleaming shield?
Grief Giver?
Well, frightening didn’t work.
Why didn’t you?
Yeah, f*ck that. Sometimes you gotta run them hands. Speaking of running them hands, that’s exactly what celestia, luna, and the other teachers need to do.
I’m not so sure.
I don’t, but it might be because I have f*cked up morals.
Who’s clear sky?
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The most common name I've encountered for Shining Armor's R63 (genderbent) counterpart, included here as a little reference to some of those works that I've enjoyed (namely the tragically hiatused Dear...Princess Celestia? and The Other Side) that use the genderbent characters.
A possible origin for the name Achilles is a compound of achos (sorrow, distress, grief) and laos (people), resulting in Akhi-lauos, "he who has the people distressed"/"he whose people have distress." Either way, this potential root indicates that Achilles is a bringer of sorrow-in other words, a Grief Giver. Grief Giver is thus a ponification of Achilles, though a very poor one, and the weakness in question their Achilles Heel (though Homestria calls it a Grief's Heel).
In my headcanon, the main way Sunset seized power wasn't by simply bullying everyone into submission; instead, she conducted disinformation campaigns in order to break up friendships and tear down her opponents' reputations, carefully orchestrating it while making sure to cover her tracks or at least give herself plausible deniability. For example, she didn't bully Rarity and Fluttershy into stopping being friends; instead, she worked to seed doubt and mistrust between them through the careful release of information and some faked communications, giving them the tools to fight amongst themselves, doing her job for her. This meant that, while pretty much everyone had a suspicion that Sunset was up to something, none of the students felt that they could definitively pin anything on her. The teachers had more evidence, but even they were uncertain; they knew she was acting antisocially, but to what extent they couldn't tell, and her reign's positive effect on cheating and other bullies (mentioned back in Ms. Shimmer Goes to Castellot) made it hard for them to tell whether she was a bully or simply someone who occasionally had bad-day-influenced episodes of antisocial action. This period of her life is one of the weakest in my headcanon, at least to me, primarily due to the aforementioned story; those journal entries praising what Sunset was doing in her bad old days make hard to justify Celestia and Luna keeping an eye on her to the degree that Fluttershy describes here, as either they would have commented in their private journals about their suspicions or wouldn't have kept so keen an eye on her.
Basically, Sunset managed to cover her tracks to the degree that no one could prove that she'd really done anything, (a degree of political competency that makes her lack of political performance in her current arc a bit questionable; the best explanation I can think of is that Sunset thinks that politics shouldn't threaten the response to an emergency situation, combined with wanting to distance herself from as much of her old self as possible, no matter how useful it might be) so if Applejack fought her it would look like she struck first.
Sometimes, yes, but not here; there were other ways they could've dealt with Sunset, ways which, while nonviolent, would still have been able to deal her ambitions a heavy blow. Also, regarding that last sentence, do you mean what they should've done in the past or what they need to do now? If the second, against who? Starlight?
You might be surprised.
Two things:
1. Who says that they're wrong? What proof do they have that they are?
2. Even if they are, the fact that you recognize that is a very positive sign. Recognition is the first step on the road to change, after all.
The person they encountered with Wind Rider, the steward.
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And she made the foam mail?
So grief giver is inspired by achilles?
So why is she questioning why fluttershy didn’t do anything?
True, but it depends on how fast you want it over with. What I mean by the last last sentence is that they knew what sunset was doing in the school and didn’t do anything. So if I was a student at CHS they would have to those hands with me.
How surprised?
It’s either that or I’m just petty as f*ck.
Are some of these characters gonna be relevant or are they just characters that are gonna be killed off?
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Yes.
Also yes.
Fluttershy's making herself sound impressive as a fighter, and AJ's wondering, if that's the case, why she didn't show that against Sunset.
As well as what consequences you're willing to accept. A quick strike against Sunset would have resolved things quickly, yes, but it would've caused immense complications elsewhere.
They knew that Sunset was doing something, but the exact extent of that "something" was unknown to them. And they weren't doing nothing; they were keeping a close eye on her, waiting for her to show her true colors. She was basically walking through a minefield; one false step showing her hand in the social situation, and she would be punished faster than she could blink. And the teachers weren't completely alone, of course; some of the students helped them, keeping an eye on Sunset and recording anything she did to them until they had enough evidence to banish her to the Moon.
Very surprised, as surprised as Sunset would've been if the portal had stayed closed for another year (i.e., No Twilight, just a regular crown as the prize):
"For just a moment, she tasted it; victory, confirmation, vindication. The cheap, false crown that rested on her head was a poor substitute for the royal regalia that was her right, but the triumph, the vindication, the taste of her destiny to come, was still sugar-sweet.
And then, as the lights dimmed and the spotlight bled red, it turned to ash in her mouth."
Either way, 2's still true, which is very good.
Some of them will be joining the main cast, so to speak. (Namely Soarin and Clear Sky.) But even those who don't are still relevant, if only for a small bit of the story, like the door guards; aside from conveying information, they also work to reinforce the theme of trust/distrust that's central to this branch of the story, just like the shopkeeper back near the beginning of The Children of the Storm served both to provide the party transportation to Cloudsdale and to reinforce the themes of the importance of friendship and the danger of isolationism.
Also, regarding whether a character's going to be relevant or killed off; Adagio was (and is going to be) relevant, and she still died. It is possible for a character to be both.
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And the foam mail will protect them?
You know what? I think I could handle that.
Then why didn’t they? Why keep her at the school?
Where is that from?
Oh so they’re not completely useless?
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Don't let the name fool you, it will.
Because they didn't know if what she was doing was enough to warrant expelling her, or if they could bring her back to the light.
Just came up with it in the comment.
Nope.
10936076
Why would they call it that?
But, what about the other students? Sunset couldn’t have been the first one to be in danger of being expelled, right? What about the other expelled students?
You just came up with that?
10941956
Basically, foam mail is a 'foam' of several interlocking layers of fine chain mail, designed in such a way that the force from an impact is distributed through the 'foam' as opposed to simply going straight through it. In addition, like foam, there's enough space between the layers of chain mail to allow them to collapse on themselves if enough force is applied to them, further dampening the impact of brute-force blows (like from a hammer, for example). Let me know if this still doesn't make sense, I'm a bit tired at time of writing this.
They took the same time and care with them, and Sunset never tried to get anyone expelled (in my headcanon); there are other ways of removing someone as an obstacle, ways that still allow her to keep an eye on them.
Yep.
10941981
So it’s not actually made out of foam?
I mean before sunset came to the school.
That’s awesome.
10941992
Nope.
My prior comment holds true; they took as much time and care dealing with their cases as they did with Sunset's. They were treating her like a run-of-the-mill trouble student, not realizing the true extent of what she was planning.
10942005
I guess what you’re saying kinda makes sense.
So they’ve never expelled a student before?
What does that mean?
How does that work?
Repaid her for what?
Did she discover equestria?
Why fear cinch?
Damn, that’s a lot. She kinda reminds me of rainbow-haired girl.
Is it bad that I would tell a joke like that?
No it is not. You guys might as well joke while you still can.
Wait, does she mean quibble pants?
That’s an emotional speech.
Is that from quibble pants?
Is now really the time for that? Shouldn’t they be training?
Why would she need fluttershy’s approval?
Fluttershy does realize that applejack is the one with the super strength, right? I can’t speak for everyone, but I wouldn’t be glaring at someone that could break me in half if they want to.
They dribble in football?
No, they would’ve. They just wouldn’t have been caught so easily.
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If they did, it was in the past and only after careful review.
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Laid-back, adjective: having a relaxed style or character. (Source: Merriam-Webster.)
The blog post attached to The Children of the Storm provides some explanation regarding the government in Cloudsdale.
He believes that she lost her life to give him his daughter and the governorship; until he manages to do something to, in his mind, settle that debt, he won't allow himself to retire and, again, in his mind, make her sacrifice be for nothing.
I can confirm that she did not.
The woman had connections and the will to use them to make other's lives easier (her offer to help Twilight get into Everton from Friendship Games) or harder (her threat to Twilight from Friendship Games). To defy her would make one's day-to-day life a lot harder, while rendering faithful service would be richly rewarded. And, if worst came to worst and her regular connections didn't work, she retained Lightning Dust and the Washouts to basically act as hired muscle, of course making sure to cover up any involvement with them.
Clear Sky's more saying that she's feeling a lot of emotions simultaneously, while Platinum's problem is more based on having difficulty expressing certain emotions when not in a certain persona.
Nah.
The problem is that the wound it's joking about is still sore, so making those specific kind of jokes may do more harm than good.
Yes.
Indeed, it was.
Her first husband, actually. It's her old wedding ring (Sprint has her husband's).
They spent most of the day on horseback, and it's drawing near night. Overexertion is just as bad as underexertion; they'll rest, then train in the morning.
She didn't need it necessarily, she was just making sure that her old friend was okay with the rooming arrangement.
Fluttershy knows that, yes, but she also knows that AJ isn't liable to turn it on her over a simple glare. Fluttershy knows her friends' strengths, as well as many of their weaknesses.
Europe has it right, soccer = football. Basically, whenever you see "football" in one of my works, unless context indicates otherwise assume it means soccer.
Perhaps. A wise person, though, would have realized that the dangers of snooping on their friends are higher than those of simply making their feelings known and asking their friends about the issue.
Edit: Could I please remember that the little green button in the bottom of the comment box is "Post Comment," not "Save Comment to Post Later?"
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But, what makes sunset different from the others? It just kinda odd.
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I meant abruptly.
And no one stood up to her?
Oh boy. Then that old wound would have been destroyed if that was me.
So this is the same clear sky and wind sprint from season 9?
If you say do, but I know who I’m putting my 20 bucks on if an all out brawl happens.
Honestly, I feel like it depends on the person your friends with.
Is that what you thought it did?
10946634
Ah, sorry. It means suddenly.
She was friends with Queen Chrysalis, ruler of the neighboring nation of Oddo. Then, when she fell into madness, Cinch provided aid to her son, Thorax, who rebelled against her and, eventually, won. Cinch effectively helped depose the ruler of a sovereign nation-state next door to Homestria, winning herself an ally in its new ruler. If she can weave such webs at the national level, what would she do to a local revolt? The sheer intimidation of her reputation, as well as the fact that, under her rule, Crystal Prep and the surrounding city prospered, meant that those few that rose against her almost always rose alone. It took the Friendship Games shattering her disguise of perfection (and, to many, rationality) for revolt against her rule to become anything more than an idle fantasy.
Once again, recognition of a weakness is a good thing; recognizing that there's a problem is the first step to fixing it.
Yes.
Depending on what they had available, I would probably do the same. Cunning is useful, but not necessarily against a charging bull.
Of course, context does matter. I'm just saying that secrecy is more dangerous than it might appear at first glance. I'll always come back to this quote regarding this:
No matter how carefully tended, no matter how well-kept, no matter how perfectly planned, secrecy will always eventually fail. Someone always tells. This isn't to say don't try to keep a secret, there are legitimate reasons to try, simply recognize that, eventually, the truth will win out. And the harder you try to keep it secret, the worse it will be for you when it breaks free. Clear Sky was honest about her concerns with Platinum and got a nice, therapeutic cry out of it; AJ was secretive about her concerns with Platinum and almost shattered her friendship with her. In Dripfeed, the secret Gaea kept from Wallflower devastated her when it was revealed, while in Politics by Many Means Cadance and Chip's secrecy regarding their concerns about Sunset almost (and should have, only failing to thanks to the author's hand pushing down on the scales) made their efforts to talk with her not work and almost killed Cadance. There's a reason Honesty's an Element; in moments like this, lying and keeping secrets does way more harm than good. Trust is vital to friendship, especially in matters as significant as this, and it's impossible to cultivate that trust while simultaneously not giving it by keeping relevant, important information secret. You can't have your cake and eat it, too; either you can trust (and show trust to) a friend or you can keep relevant, important information secret from them. It can't be both.
Many a time.
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What made Sunset different was the field she was playing on; most of those Celestia and Luna had to discipline were interested in having others do their homework for them, establishing social dominance, or simply making others suffer. Sunset was trying to use magic to ascend to immortality and incredible power before returning to her homeworld and overthrowing the princess. Most bullies (or suspected ones) lived in the world; Sunset wanted to rule it.
As for why they treated her as gently as they did, before the Fall Formal they weren't sure what she was doing (she was pretty good at covering her tracks most of the time), and her occasional acts that helped reduce bullying and cheating made what she was up to even less clear. After the Formal, the Elements and their aftereffects made discipling her unnecessary, as well as much harder; how exactly were they supposed to punish a teenager who transformed into a monster (not a demon, BTW, demons are a completely different thing) using something that they weren't even aware existed until that day? The headache of trying to classify that, as well as Sunset's genuine reformation, meant that no immediate action was taken, and as she grew as a friend, eventually it just... dropped out of sight, her case disappearing out of inertia. Celestia and Luna kept their records of what she did (which she added to, to their shock) around in case she reverted or turned out to be deceiving them, but after the Friendship Games they judged that she'd truly changed, and gave the papers to her to do with as she wished. She gave them back, saying that she never wanted to forget what she'd used to be, what forsaking friendship eventually led to.
TL;DR: Sunset was qualitatively different from other bullies at CHS by virtue of her goals (ruling the entire world as opposed to simply having fun in her corner of it) and was treated the way she was by the staff because of the lack of clarity surrounding her actions before the Formal and the clear effects of the Elements after it.
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This story is making me realize I have a lot of issue that may not be normal.
How did I not piece that together?
Charging bull is actually the best way to describe applejack.
I may have to remember that, but with a lot of things happening it might be tricky. Also, when did that part with cadence happen?
Yikes. Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it.
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Honestly, I don’t know. It could just be me not thinking logically, but it kinda just sounds like favoritism.
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Not favoritism so much as her circumstances made most of the other courses available to the principals... shall we say, inconvenient.