Forgiveness
Principal Abacus Cinch leaned back in her velvet office chair, fiddling with a pencil. She absentmindedly removed her spectacles and wiped away a few stray smudges. She put them back in their proper place with a sigh.
She had been mulling over the events of the past few days for a while. Neither a defeat, nor a victory. She furrowed her brow and put down the pencil. I suppose it’s what I deserve for treating my prized student so horribly. And now she’s gone. The principal stared at her faint reflection in the immaculately polished mahogany desk. Maybe this is the price I pay for all my misdeeds.
She sat in silence for what seemed like hours (while in reality it was only ten minutes) until she finally heard a knock on her door.
“Come in.” She called, without the usual pomp in her voice.
The door creaked open, and Cinch’s eyes widened at who she saw.
“Good afternoon, Principal Cinch!” Principal Celestia said cheerfully.
Cinch immediately narrowed her eyes in hostility.
“What do you want? Come to humiliate me some more? Was your unfair victory not enough for you?”
Celestia giggled and strode to the blue-skinned woman’s desk.
“Oh Principal Cinch, don’t be like that, I just wanted to have a small chat, maybe go somewhere fun?”
“Go somewhere-Wait. Are you…asking me out?” She abruptly stood up with her hands on her desk. “I’ll have you know I have no interest in ‘chatting’ with you, romantically or otherwise. Why would I want to associate with you at all, after what happened at the games?” She quickly remembered herself and sat back down, albeit a scowl still on her face.
Celestia’s laughter rang out once again. “Nothing romantic, just a talk between fellow principals. Though it’s funny you interpreted it that way.” She grinned, apparently bearing no resentment towards her more morally grey counterpart.
Cinch continued to scowl. “Funny? Is that what you think I am? Am I merely a joke for you to laugh at?”
Celestia took on a concerned expression. “Cinch, why are you being so defensive? Not everything is insulting your precious reputation.”
Cinch ignored her question. “Why are you even here? It’s after school hours, shouldn’t you be out doing…whatever it is that you do in your free time?”
The Canterlot High principal bent over slightly and placed her elbows on the desk, putting her at eye level with Cinch. She let out a slightly exasperated sigh.
“I’m here because I wanted to talk, like I said. The first thing I wanted to talk about was Twilight. Aren’t you wondering how your ‘prized student’ is doing?” Celestia’s expression softened, and she looked almost worried.
Cinch huffed in annoyance. “I don’t think I have to wonder, she obviously fits in better there than she ever did here. I’m not blind Celestia, I could always tell she disliked it at this school.”
Celestia blinked. “Well, you’re not wrong. She seems happier at Canterlot High, and believe it or not, she’s really starting to come out of her shell. Which brings me to the next thing I wanted to talk to you about.”
Cinch remained stony-faced as ever. “Which is…?” She spoke with a hint of venom in her voice.
“Well…you know Twilight may never forgive you for what you put her through, right? I mean, blackmail, manipulation, peer pressure…”
To Celestia’s surprise, Cinch chuckled lightly. “That much is obvious, Celestia. If I were in her position, I wouldn’t forgive me.”
Celestia briefly grit her teeth in anger, but took a deep breath to calm herself. “And that’s the main reason I came to talk to you.” She maintained eye contact with Cinch, her gaze unwavering.
“Listen, Abacus.” Cinch flinched at the usage of her first name. “I’m nothing if not forgiving. And I can forgive you for what you did to Twilight. But I only forgive those who want to be forgiven. Do you wish to be forgiven for your actions, Abacus?”
Cinch was silent for almost a minute. “…Yes. Yes, I do. What I did, what I’ve been doing, it was all rather unbecoming of me, wasn’t it?” She hesitated before speaking her next words. “I…apologize.”
The apology caught Celestia off guard. Then she cracked a small smile. “I forgive you. I knew there was some good in there.” She teasingly poked Cinch’s chest, near her heart. Cinch blushed so slightly it was almost unnoticeable. She cleared her throat awkwardly.
Celestia stood up from where she was leaning on Cinch’s desk. “Now, how about a trip to Sugarcube Corner? I hear their red velvet cupcakes are incredible.”
For the first time in a long while, Cinch smiled. It was a genuine smile, born not out of malice, but of joy. “That sounds lovely, Celestia.”
~~~~~
Cinch and Celestia sat next to each other in a booth at Sugar Cube Corner, contentedly watching the people around them. Celestia was happily gorging herself on a cupcake. Cinch is sitting awfully close. She thought curiously.
“Are you sure you don’t want anything to eat? I’m telling you, the stuff here is great.” She took a particularly large bite out of her sugary treat.
“No thank you, Celestia, I was never really one for sweet things. I’m perfectly fine just enjoying the atmosphere.” Cinch sat with her hands in her lap, now with her usual neutral expression.
They sat in silence for a few more minutes, until Cinch finally spoke up again.
“I want to apologize again for how…abrasive I was earlier. I was still reeling from what happened at the games.”
Celestia shifted her seating position to face Cinch. Deep purple eyes met lavender ones.
“Oh, there’s another thing I wanted to ask you about. Were you really going to tell the school board about what happened? Or were you just bluffing?” She finished her cupcake and wiped her mouth with a napkin.
Cinch looked uncharacteristically nervous. “I wasn’t really certain at the time. I was just so angry…” She didn’t meet Celestia’s gaze.
“Hey, it’s okay. Water under the bridge, you know?” She placed a finger under Cinch’s chin and gently lifted it to once again look her in the eye. Cinch’s blush was much more noticeable this time.
“Of course, Celestia. Thank you for forgiving me.”
Celestia merely smiled in reply. “Oh! There was one last thing I wanted to ask you…”
“Yes?”
“Do you…have a thing for me?”
“I’m not answering that question.”