When Moondancer transfers to a new school, Crystal Prep, she is not sure if she will be able to fit in. She makes 2 new friends, and everything seems to be going well. However, as time goes on, Moondancer questions if they really like her or if they simply need something from her.
Moondancer woke up to the sound of her alarm clock. She realized she had finally gotten to sleep, even if it was only for a few hours. The night before, she had been anxious. Well, for the last few weeks, she had been. Today was finally the day she was going to join a new school, Crystal Prep. Her family had recently moved in from another town, and it had been difficult, as she had to say goodbye to her friends. Moondancer was a very intelligent girl. It wasn’t the studies or the classes that scared her, it was fitting in. She was never the one to go up and initiate conversation, and she was fortunate her old friends reached out to her.
Well, hopefully the students at Crystal Prep are nice, she thought as she got out of bed to get ready for the day. She put her glasses on, the first thing she did every single day. Without them, she couldn’t see 6 feet in front of her.
She looked at the poster next to her bed, a picture of her favourite singer, Adagio Dazzle. She loved all the girls from the band, The Dazzlings, but Adagio was the most impressive to her. For years, she had dreamt of meeting her. But she lived quite far away, in fact, on the opposite side of the country. She and her parents had planned to go see The Dazzlings on tour a few years back, but the show in Canterlot had been cancelled at the last minute. Maybe next year, they would decide to return.
After completing her morning routine and changing into her uniform, she headed downstairs. Her mom was in the kitchen, cooking her favourite breakfast food, scrambled eggs.
“Good morning, Moondancer,” her mom greeted her as she entered the kitchen.
“Well, you sure sound full of energy,” her mom said sarcastically. She looked over at Moondancer, and a look of concern crossed her face instead. “You look exhausted. Did you ever get to sleep?”
“For a few hours,” Moondancer said as her mom sat down next to her at the dining table, giving her the plate of eggs. “I’m just thinking about…”
“Don’t worry, Moondancer,” her mom tried to comfort her. “You’re such a talented and bright girl. I’m sure the students at Crystal Prep would love to be friends with you.”
“Thanks,” Moondancer replied, poking her eggs.
“Come on now, don’t play with your food,” Her mom said. “We have to get going in about 15 minutes. Your dad already left for work.”
“I’ll be ready,” Moondancer said, as she started eating. Her mom had a point. Most people are kind and accepting…right?
~.~.~.~
Moondancer waved goodbye to her mom as she drove away from the Crystal Prep entrance. She took a deep breath and walked up to the doors.
After making her way to her first classroom, just on time, she opened the door and entered. The teacher was standing at the desk, and noticed her.
“Welcome back to school everyone,” She said to the class. “First today before we begin the lesson, we have a new student with us. Moondancer, take a seat.”
“Thank you,” Moondancer said as she took the only available seat, to the right of a girl with a long pink and green ponytail. The girl was just getting her books out.
This is my chance, Moondancer thought. This is what my old friends would have done. She waited until the girl looked in her direction, then smiled, getting her attention.
“Hi, I’m Moondancer,” she said, keeping her smile. The girl looked back at her book, as if she didn’t hear her. “Um-”
“Oh, is that so?” the girl looked at her with a smile, then her expression changed, she suddenly looked annoyed. “I wouldn't have known that, even though the teacher already told everyone.”
Moondancer’s heart sank. “Oh, I just-”
“Do you want something?” the girl asked.
“No, nothing,” Moondancer replied. This was not going well.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought.”
“Sour Sweet, stop being so rude,” A voice came from someone on the other side of the girl. Moondancer looked over to see a girl with purple and pink hair, smiling at her. “I'm Sunny Flare. It's nice to have you here deary. We can talk after class. Things are pretty strict here.”
“Oh, okay.” That was all Moondancer got out before the teacher began the lesson. She looked back to her own book, a little shocked by what had just happened. How could that girl have been so rude to her? And what did the other girl, Sunny Flare want to talk to her about?
~.~.~.~
After the class, Moondancer got up and left to use the bathroom. She walked quickly through the hallways, trying to get there before the hallway got too crowded again.
On her way to the next class, she heard a familiar voice call to her.
“Hey, wait! Wait up! I’ve been trying to catch up with you ever since the class ended!” Sunny Flare ran up to her with the other girl from class, laughing a bit. They stopped in front of her. Sunny looked at the other girl. “Say it!”
“I’m sorry.” The girl choked out.
“Oh, I mean…I guess I can forgive you.” Moondancer said.
“Yeah, whatever.” The girl grumbled. Moondancer felt like Sunny Flare had to talk her into apologizing.
“So…is there something you 2 wanted?” she asked.
Sunny Flare smiled. “Just want to…make you feel welcome here.” She looked at the other girl. “Right?”
“Yeah, that’s totally right!” the girl replied in an overly sweet tone. “At least that’s what she thinks.” She bitterly added.
“So deary, let’s talk on the way to lunch why don’t we?” Sunny Flare offered.
“Sure, I’m up for that. That sounds great!” Moondancer replied. I hope I don’t sound too desperate now…
“Great, this is Sour Sweet.” Sunny introduced her friend.
“Nice to meet you.” Moondancer said. Sour nodded, but didn’t reply. The 3 girls started walking towards the cafeteria.
“So, math is really hard huh?” Sunny asked.
“No, not for me.” Moondancer said.
Sunny looked at Sour and smiled, then looked back to Moondancer. “Oh yeah? You’re pretty good at math?” she asked.
“Yeah, I don’t find what we did very challenging at all. My favourite class is probably English.” Moondancer explained. “My friends at my old school always made fun of me, for actually enjoying studying. I just love learning new things.” She laughed. “What about you? what’s your favourite class?”
“Not sure…” Sour Sweet said, thoughtfully. Then she switched to her sour tone. “But I definitely know my least favourite. History.”
“Oof, that one doesn’t get me as much as science. So confusing.” Sunny said. “How are you in science Moondancer?”
“I love science as well!” Moondancer said, happy to have someone else who liked talking about school. “They’re all so fascinating to me. but you know, I really have a thing for writing.”
“Do you want to sit with us today?” Sunny asked.
Moondancer stopped walking. “Um…I’d love to, but why? We’ve only just met.”
“Exactly.” Sunny explained. “You’re the new girl and I know what it’s like to be new in a school like this. It’s not fun. But we can try to make it more fun for you!”
“Thank you so much.” Moondancer smiled. “So…friends?”
“Mhm! Friends.”
They turned to Sour Sweet. “Well…uh, we’ll see.” She said.
“Sour Sweet takes a long time to open up.” Sunny said, laughing a little.
“That’s okay.” Moondancer said. These girls seemed nice, well at least Sunny Flare. Maybe Crystal Prep wasn’t so bad after all.
~.~.~.~
The day went by quickly. Moondancer didn’t share all of the same classes with Sour and Sunny, but they were together in science. Moondancer was leaving the school when Sunny approached her again.
“Wow, I still don’t know what I would’ve done if you hadn’t helped me with that project,” Sunny said.
“Of course, it was a simple project,” Moondancer replied. “For me, of course.” She added. She didn’t want Sunny to take it the wrong way.
“Um…” Sunny hesitated a bit. “I haven’t really done this before, but do you want to like…exchange numbers? Might make it easier to contact each other if we just wanna talk or have questions about school or something. You know, you can always ask me too…but I probably don’t know what I’m doing.” She laughed.
“Okay, sure,” Moondancer said. She told Sunny her number as Sunny typed it into her own phone.
“Thanks! I’ll text you later,” Sunny said. “I’ve gotta get home and start tackling this mountain of homework we got today, ugh. See you tomorrow.”
“Bye, try to…have a good evening,” Moondancer waved. She saw her mom’s car in the distance, and began walking over.
“Hi, sweetie.” Her mom said as she got in the back seat. “How was school?”
“It was unexpectedly fun.” She started. “I learned a lot, I got to explore the school, and I even made a new friend…possibly 2.”
“Wow, already?” her mom said, a bit surprised. She knew Moondancer struggled to make friends. “I’m so proud of you. I know how worried you were about not fitting in. So, you like Crystal Prep?”
“Yes! I love it.”
~.~.~.~
Moondancer was in her bedroom sitting at the desk, looking over the day’s homework. There was quite a lot compared to her old school, not that it was a bad thing for her though.
“Hey Moony. Studying this late?” her mom’s voice brought her out of her thoughts.
Moondancer looked up. “You know me, always want to be a few steps ahead!” she said.
“Ahead of who?” her mom asked.
“…myself.” she laughed, not really having an answer. It was true, she hadn’t compared herself to others much before.
“Well, I’m going to go get ready for bed. You should too,” her mom said.
“I’m nearly done with this homework,” Moondancer replied.
“You work so hard,” her mom said.
Moondancer smiled. “Don’t worry mom. I’m just making sure everything is perfect. I’ll go to bed soon.”
“Okay, well goodnight.” Her mom hugged her and left, closing the door. Moondancer looked back to her homework sheets. She revised her answers once more, then got up to get ready for bed. That should be good.
She was about to change when her phone rang. Who could be calling her at 8:30? She picked it up. “Hello?
“Hi, Moondancer?” a voice came from the other end.
“Hello, do I know you?” she asked.
“Yeah, it’s me Sunny Flare from school.” Sunny replied.
“Oh. Hi!” she said, now she realized why the voice was so familiar. “How are you?”
“Doing okay, I guess,” Sunny answered. “Could be better. Did you get such intense homework too?”
“Not in my opinion, I’ve just finished up,” Moondancer said. “And double checking all my answers.”
“I wish I could be like you,” Sunny sighed. “I don’t know if I’m even gonna get it done in time. I’m really so worried. Moondancer, I would never ask this normally but could you tell me just a couple answers?”
Moondancer paused. She thought for a moment. “That…wouldn’t be right. You need to learn it yourself. You know, they give out homework for a reason. Don’t do it just to please the teachers, but do it for yourself. That’s what I do! Even if I’m reading something for an assignment and I get curious, I go research it. basically, studying is my hobby.”
“Well, it’s late and I’m tired.” Sunny said. “But if you’re not comfortable with it deary, I totally understand.”
“Thanks.” Moondancer said, glad Sunny didn’t think she simply didn’t want to help. “You should consider it though, must be kind of miserable learning things for someone else.”
“It is.” Sunny agreed. “I don’t care about geometry, how can I find a passion for it?”
“I guess it’s each to their own.” Moondancer said.
“So, what time do you go to bed?” Sunny asked.
“Usually by 9:00.” She glanced at the clock, it was 8:45 now. “Oh my gosh, it’s getting late.”
“Yeah, I usually go to bed around 10.” Sunny explained. By the time I finish my homework it’s so late, I have no time for my hobbies.”
“Oh yeah?” Moondancer said. “What are those?”
“I enjoy performing arts, acting and stuff.” Sunny continued. “And sometimes, singing too. But I didn’t get to do any of it today. Oh well, I guess I’ll figure this out. Maybe tomorrow we could talk about it in the evening?”
“We’ll see.” Moondancer said.
“Or whatever of course.” Sunny said. “Don’t think I just want to get information or anything, I really do want to be friends. I just…well, most people in crystal prep stay to themselves. I like how you kind of came out yourself and talked to Sour Sweet.”
Moondancer smiled. She had done the right thing. She had been thinking that Sunny was the one who started the friendship, but if she hadn’t talked to Sour Sweet, Sunny might not have noticed her. “It’s what my old friends would’ve done.” She said.
“Oh, why aren’t you friends anymore?” Sunny questioned. “If you don’t mind.”
“Well, I transferred schools and we just don’t have time for each other and fell out of touch.” She said. It had been difficult to accept the last few weeks. “I hear from them every now and then, but I kind of want to start new.”
“Sounds good!” Sunny said.
“Hey Moondancer, what answer you got for question 11?” Sour Sweet asked, finally making herself known.
“Sour Sweet, weren’t you listening?” Sunny scolded her. “She doesn’t want to share her answers with us and that’s totally okay.”
“Oh, whatever.” Sour said. Then she used her sweet voice. “Hi Moondancer, how you been?”
Moondancer laughed. She could imagine Sour Sweet’s expressions. “Busy. But it looks like I’m finally done. Going to bed soon. But I can’t wait to see you two tomorrow, maybe we can do something after school. Like take our homework somewhere?”
“There’s a nice café downtown!” Sunny suggested. “Great idea. We’ll head over there after school?”
“Sounds like a plan.” Moondancer replied. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight, Moondancer.” Sunny said. “Uh…do you have any nicknames?”
Moondancer thought a moment. “Not any I like, let’s leave it at that.” The girls all laughed. When the call ended, it was nearly 9:00. As Moondancer got ready for bed, she couldn’t stop smiling. Everything was going to be okay.
The next evening, Moondancer made her way to the café downtown. Sunny had sent her the directions. As excited as she was to get started with her homework, she waited so they could all look at it together. After about a 15-minute walk, she arrived at the café. Sunny and Sour waved to her from a table just outside the front door. She smiled and joined them, unpacking her bag.
"Good afternoon, girls," She greeted them.
"Hello, Moondancer. Nice to see you again," Sunny said. "I was hoping my directions were clear enough."
"You guys happen to know the equation for photosynthesis?" Sour Sweet asked.
Moondancer sat down and wrote the equation in Sour Sweet's notebook.
Sour Sweet cringed. "Okay...how do you remember that? Is there like some special trick?"
"Repetition, mostly," Moondancer organized her own homework sheets. "It's 6 carbon dioxide molecules and six water molecules, converted by light energy and chlorophyl into a sugar molecule and six oxygen molecules."
"Thank you so much," Sour Sweet said, actually seeming sincere.
"Of course, it's very simple once you get familiar with it." Moondancer explained. "You just have to-"
"Hey girls," A voice cut her off. She looked up and saw a girl with white and blue hair in 2 ponytails, also wearing glasses.
"Hi, Sugarcoat," Sunny Flare greeted her.
"Are you studying for the science exam tomorrow?" the girl asked.
"Yeah, and suffering at the same time," Sour Sweet replied sourly. Then she smiled. "But good thing we have Moony to help us out a little bit." She pulled Moondancer in for a hug. "And to keep us company, of course!"
"I don't think we've met," Moondancer looked up. "I'm Moondancer."
"Sugarcoat." The girl introduced herself.
"You're friends with Sunny and Sour?" Moondancer asked.
"Not friends specifically, we have several of the same classes so we study together sometimes," Sugarcoat explained in a bored tone. "I don't have time for friendship outside of studying. We use each other, basically. That's the most common type of friendship in our school. Now, I have to get things done." She walked into the café, most likely to find a table by herself.
Moondancer stared ahead for a minute. "Wow."
Sunny Flare laughed. "Yeah, contrary to her name, she does not sugarcoat things at all. I always found it funny. This is what I meant by when I said, you're one of my first real friends. You just seemed really bright and friendly."
"Um, excuse me?" Sour Sweet pointed to herself.
"Yes, Sour Sweet," Sunny replied. "You're a good friend too."
"Sugarcoat, huh?" Moondancer thought out loud. "She seems like a robot. Sure, I love studying and learning, but there's more to life. At least I know that much. I hope I never end up like her."
"She does get the best grades, but at what cost?" Sour Sweet said. Becoming a studying robot, I guess!"
"Yeah," Moondancer said, then paused. She looked over to Sunny. "She could use a friend, don't you think?"
"We've tried," Sunny answered. "A couple other girls have tried too, no one can get her to open up very much. You can try, but I doubt you'll get too far. All we get from her is some answers for exams and homework. Or else we'd just leave her alone."
"But why does she study with you?" Moondancer asked. "It must benefit her somehow."
"Huh..." Sunny began. "I don't know. Never thought about it. There's got to be some reason."
"Oh, okay." Moondancer said. She looked down at her papers again, noticing how late it was getting. "So, where were we? Let's do a few more then we can get something to eat."
"But I'm hangry now," Sour Sweet complained.
"Come on, you wanted my help, I'm helping you by pushing you to do a little more," Moondancer said. "2 more?"
Sour Sweet thought for a moment. "Okay, fine," she finally accepted.
~.~.~.~.~
After a few minutes, the girls had gotten their food and returned to the table. Sour Sweet and Moondancer were having French fries, and Sunny had decided on a cookie.
"I can't believe you guys let me get this," Sunny laughed. "I won't be able to fit into my school uniform if I keep giving in and getting sweets."
"Oh, just enjoy it," Sour Sweet said. Moondancer was about to get back into her homework assignment, however she noticed a girl across the street, wearing the Crystal Prep uniform. She had short blue hair. Moondancer thought for a moment, she had actually seen this girl in science class that day.
"Hey who's that?" Moondancer asked Sunny, as she pointed towards the girl. "She's got the same uniform on."
Sunny noticed the girl, and lost her smile. "Ugh, that's Indigo Zap."
"Sounds like you don't have a very pleasant view on her," Moondancer said.
"No, she's not that bad," Sunny replied. "She's a basketball player."
"Not only that, she's the captain of the basketball team," Sour Sweet added. "And a few others as well. Basically, she's the best at every sport there is."
Moondancer nodded. "Good to know."
"I don't get along with her personally, we're quite opposites as you can tell," Sunny explained. "Sour Sweet knows her better since she's also on a couple teams."
"Well, all I know about her is she's a snob and pushes me and all the other teammates way too hard, no matter what. Even if we're sick."
"The one thing about her is that she's not the brightest...academically." Sunny continued. "She makes up for it though, she is the best athlete in crystal prep. Just don't mess with her." She lowered her voice to a whisper. "She has been in trouble for bullying. There's this one girl she pushed in a locker once, and that poor girl was stuck there for hours trying to get out."
Moondancer's eyes went wide. "Oh my gosh."
"Yeah," Sunny said. "The general population of students aren't that friendly or unfriendly. There aren't that many, just a few who go out of their way to hurt others."
Moondancer was glad that Indigo Zap was only in one of her classes. But there was no need for her to worry, as long as she was careful and stayed with her friends, she would be completely safe.
~.~.~.~.~
Moondancer handed in her science exam the next day. She was not worried, knowing she had studied properly. As she looked at the other students, she realized she was almost the first one to finish. There was another girl in the back of the class, with purple skin. She had her pink and purple hair in a bun, and glasses similar to Moondancer's. She noticed this girl never interacted with anyone. Maybe she could use a friend as well.
After all the students had completed the exam, the teacher was announcing the highest scores. "So, great efforts by all, the top score was a 100 and the lowest was a 33."
"What loser got a 33?"
Moondancer turned around and saw Indigo Zap in the row behind her, whispering to another student and laughing a bit. Indigo looked in her direction, and Moondancer immediately turned back around, not wanting to look her in the eyes. Especially after hearing the story Sunny Flare told her. She would rather not know what it's like to be shoved in a locker.
The teacher continued, getting their attention. "In first place with a 100 is Twilight Sparkle. Second with a 96 is Sugarcoat, and third with a 92 is Moondancer."
Moondancer's eyes lit up, and she looked over to Sour Sweet and Sunny Flare. "Wow I got third place!"
"Yeah, good job I guess." Sour Sweet said indifferently. Moondancer didn't think too hard about it, she was just proud of herself in that moment. She would have liked to be second or first, but maybe next time. Twilight Sparkle...she didn't remember meeting anyone like that. She smiled up at the teacher as she was given back her exam. Sour and Sunny received theirs as well, but they looked miserable.
"Did you not pass?" Moondancer asked.
"No, we did," Sunny answered. "Just hoping to get a better score, but at least we passed. Thanks for studying with us this week, though."
As Moondancer got lost in her thoughts, she heard the same voice from earlier.
"What the heck?! Is this some kind of mistake?"
"No, Indigo Zap there's no mistake," The teacher told her as she returned to the front of the class. Moondancer tried not to laugh, assuming Indigo had gotten the lowest score. Well, that's what you get for making fun of others.
~.~.~.~.~
The hallways of Crystal Prep were busy as the 3 girls were leaving the classroom for the cafeteria. Sunny and Sour still looked a little disappointed.
Sunny Flare sighed. "That exam was something!"
"That Sugarcoat is way up there," Moondancer said. "Must be nice. She didn't even seem happy when she got the results."
"Nothing makes her happy," Sour Sweet replied. "Or unhappy. She just is."
The girls walked for a few moments, then Moondancer stopped. "I'm just gonna go to the bathroom before lunch," she told them. "Save me a space at the table."
"Why, of course, deary," Sunny reassured her. "We'll wait for you to start eating." She and Sour Sweet continued to walk, turning a corner. Moondancer turned to head to the bathrooms, when she heard them laughing in the distance. What could be so funny? She didn't want them to wait too long, so she walked quickly. Running was strictly forbidden in Crystal Prep, as many other things were. She was turning a corner when she remembered that other girl who she hadn't caught the name of yet. Lost in her thoughts, she didn't look around the corner, and ran into someone, almost knocking her off her feet.
"Oh gosh, I'm so sorry," Moondancer said, adjusting her glasses. She looked up to see Indigo Zap.
"Watch it!" Indigo snapped at her.
"I know, I didn't mean to," Moondancer said, not wanting to anger her any further.
"Okay, whatever," Indigo replied, then paused for a minute. Was she really okay with what happened? "So, you're good at science, huh?" Indigo asked.
"I really enjoy it, yes," Moondancer said, laughing nervously. She didn't know where this was going. "But not as much as that Sugarcoat, it seems," Moondancer continued. "Anyway, I'm just going to the bathroom." She took a step ahead, but Indigo blocked her way. Moondancer's heart started pounding in her chest. She noticed this section of the hallways was not very busy, as most students had already gone to the cafeteria. They were the only ones in the area.
"Um...excuse me." Moondancer stuttered, hoping it would work.
"Hey, I'm not done with you," Indigo said. "What's your name again?"
"Moondancer," she replied, looking like she was about to have a panic attack.
"Indigo Zap," Indigo introduced herself casually. "I'm known as the best athlete in Crystal Prep. But I'm sure you've heard, yeah?"
"I actually have," Moondancer replied, trying to stay calm. "I- I can't really talk right now."
"Oh, sure you can," Indigo continued. "So, anyway, I need to get my grades up, you're gonna help me out. You wanna do this the easy way?"
Moondancer struggled to find words, she wanted to run away but she knew she wouldn't get very far, as Indigo was surely faster than her. "I don't want to do this at all," she finally answered.
"Well, you're going to, or you're going to regret it," Indigo threatened her. "You're doing my homework today. I'll give it to you right after class then you'll give it back to me tomorrow morning. And it better be perfect, you understand?"
Moondancer was almost in tears. "But I-"
"And don't tell anyone else," Indigo cut her off. "Or you'll be in trouble with me. Got it?" Moondancer stared up at the ceiling, unable to look her in the eyes. "Well?"
Moondancer nodded, looking off to the side. "Yes, I've got it."
"Good," Indigo smiled, stepping back. "See you." She started towards the cafeteria, leaving Moondancer behind, tears running down her cheeks. She just stayed in the hallway, leaning against the wall for a minute. What had she just agreed to?
~.~.~.~.~
Once Moondancer had taken a few minutes in the bathroom and regained her breath, and gotten herself under control, she went to the cafeteria to join her friends. As promised, they were sitting at their usual table and had an empty space with a chair, just for her. The sight of her friends made her feel just the slightest bit better. As she got her plate and sat down by Sunny, she noticed they had started eating already.
"Sorry, we had to start eating," Sunny apologized. "It had been 20 minutes. Is everything alright?"
"Mhm, good," Moondancer replied automatically. Things weren't really good though. She was about to change her answer, but Indigo's words replayed in her head again. What would Indigo do to her if she found out that she told someone? No, Moondancer didn't even want to think about it. She glanced at the other students in the cafeteria, and noticed how quiet it was in Crystal Prep. In her old school, the students were always excited for lunch time so they could sit with their friends, and spend time together. But it wasn't the same here. Sunny and Sour seemed to be the exception, though.
"You aren't eating?" Sunny's voice brought her out of her daydream.
Moondancer noticed she hadn't taken a bit of her sandwich yet. "Oh, right," she said, picking it up. "Just thinking of something else."
"Fair enough," Sunny said. "You wanna go do homework at the café again?"
"Not today, sorry," she told them, before taking another bite of her sandwich, despite feeling sick. I have a bit more homework than you do.
~.~.~.~.~
Moondancer looked over the assignments on her desk, sighing. She had been doing her own homework all evening and revising it, actually enjoying it. She had completely forgotten she had to do Indigo Zap's homework as well, but at least it was basically the same as her own. After another while, she had nearly completed it when there was a knock on the door.
"Come in," Moondancer grumbled. Her mom opened the door and entered her bedroom, walking up to her desk. "What?" she snapped, not intending to sound so annoyed.
"Hello to you as well," her mom said.
Moondancer instantly felt guilty. "Sorry. I'm just doing a lot right now."
"Moony, you're still doing homework?" her mom asked gently.
"Yes, I am," Moondancer replied.
"But at dinner you said you were nearly done," her mom commented.
"I had...forgotten about something else," Moondancer explained. It was actually true.
"Well, must be a big something because that was 2 hours ago," her mom told her. Moondancer looked at the clock, she hadn't realized how much time had gone by either. It was nearly 8:30. "Have you done anything else?" her mom asked.
"Come to think of it...no, I haven't," Moondancer responded.
"Well, why do you seem to be so tense?" her mom questioned, sitting on her bed just across from the desk. "I thought studying made you happy, no matter what subject it was."
Yes, this was true, but doing the same homework twice was not her idea of happy at all! "I'm just not feeling too well," Moondancer said, really wanting to avoid lying whenever it was possible. She had never kept anything from her mom before, but her fear of Indigo Zap got the best of her.
"Oh, that's too bad," her mom said. "I forgot to ask. Did you see your friends today?"
"Yeah, I did," Moondancer replied. Honestly, she wasn't up for recounting the day's events. "Can I just finish this up and get some sleep?"
"Of course," her mom said as she got up, walking over to her. "Just don't work too hard, and remember your health is most important. I know you like to check your answers 3 or 4 times but maybe take it easy the next few days, especially if you think you're getting sick."
Moondancer smiled. Her mom always cared for her so much. "I'll try."
"Okay," her mom whispered. She looked into Moondancer's eyes for a moment, then continued. "And you would tell me if anything was going on, right?"
Oh, no. Moondancer didn't know what to do. There weren't many ways to answer that question, that wouldn't make her suspicious. She took a deep breath. "Yes, of course I would mom. I'm just..." she stuttered, looking down at her papers. "I want it to be perfect."
"Okay, but only 15 more minutes," her mom insisted.
"Alright," she agreed. "Goodnight." She waited until her mom had left the room, then sighed, realizing she had outright lied to her. So much for enjoying the evening. After about 10 minutes of double-checking the assignments, she decided it was good. She took extra time to make sure Indigo's was as perfect as her own, as much as she didn't want to. But she definitely didn't want to find out what Indigo would do to her if anything was incorrect. It was 9:30 by the time she had finished her nighttime routine and gotten into bed. She didn't have time to tidy up her desk at all; it was normally a little messy though. She snuggled under the light green sheets, her favourite colour. Closing her eyes, she hoped she would be able to get some good rest tonight. As it turned out, she was more tired than she thought and fell sound asleep.
I knew things were going too well, Moondancer thought to herself as she made her way through the hallways of Crystal Prep. Things could be alright, though. She would just give Indigo's homework to her, and hope that she didn't ever have to deal with it again. However, she knew that was unlikely. As Moondancer opened her locker to get her things, she noticed Sugarcoat was doing the same a few lockers down. She smiled to herself. Maybe Sunny and Sour hadn't tried hard enough, and Sugarcoat was just waiting for someone to reach out, much like Moondancer used to.
Moondancer approached Sugarcoat nervously. She stared for a moment, then Sugarcoat noticed her and made eye contact. "Um, hi." Moondancer greeted her.
"Is there something you needed?" Sugarcoat asked. "I'm busy at the moment getting ready for class."
"Just wanted to say hi," Moondancer said. At least she had gotten an answer. "See how you're doing. But maybe it's not the best time."
"It's obviously not," Sugarcoat replied as she closed her locker. "And it's never going to be. I have my days planned very well and I don't have time for nonsensical chatter."
"Understood," Moondancer nodded. "Well, let me know if you want someone to talk to. I'm here, Moondancer." Sugarcoat didn't say anything in response, just walking away. Moondancer sighed, then walked around the corner to get to her class. She stopped when she saw Indigo Zap walk up to her. Oh, great. Moondancer thought. At least there are other people around today. She can't keep me for long.
"Hey, give over," Indigo whispered. Moondancer fumbled around in her bag for the papers and after making sure no one was looking, she handed Indigo the papers. Indigo grinned and looked down at the homework.
"You're welcome," Moondancer said sarcastically.
"Huh?" Indigo asked as she looked up. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Never mind," Moondancer said. "I was awake late you know, but it's all done correctly."
"Better be," Indigo replied. "I'm sure you've got nothing better to do with your free time anyway." She laughed. "See you after class, I'll give you the next round." And with that, Indigo walked past her. Moondancer stood there in disbelief. Indigo was going to keep using her?! She debated telling someone, but if they didn't believe her, and Indigo somehow found out...Moondancer would probably end up regretting it.
She sighed and looked around for Sunny and Sour, walking to the first class. She opened her phone on the way and noticed a message from Sunny earlier that morning.
Moondancer deary, we're going to the mall this afternoon, would love for you to join us! – Sunny Flare
Moondancer smiled. She should have some time to stop by.
~.~.~.~.~.~.~
The Canterlot mall was not too busy that afternoon. Sunny, Sour, and Moondancer walked through slowly, looking at all the shops. They were still in their uniforms, as they had gone directly from school. Sunny had a rather large bag from her favourite shop, Fashion Forward. Sour Sweet had a couple small bags from the make-up shop. Moondancer hadn't found anything of her interest yet, as she wasn't a big shopper. Unless there was a book store.
"You don't shop much, I take it?" Sunny asked as they continued walking.
"No, not really my thing," Moondancer replied. "But I do like to hang out with my friends."
"Aww," Sunny clasped her hands. "That's so nice."
"So, gotta mention something," Sour Sweet started, looking at Moondancer. "I saw you talking to Sugarcoat today, how'd that go for you?"
"You guessed it," Moondancer said. "She said she didn't have time for 'nonsensical chatter' and kind of sent me along my way. Doesn't she ever get lonely? I mean, what a life."
"We wouldn't know, and we're not gonna try," Sour Sweet told her. "She would be a help with studying since she knows a lot of crap, but she refuses to help us most times. You aren't that far behind her though, Moony!"
Moondancer laughed. That was the nickname she wasn't very fond of, but she didn't correct them. "I try my best."
"So do I," Sunny said, losing her smile. "I guess it just has a different meaning, my best isn't as good as yours."
"Hey, don't feel that way," Moondancer comforted her. "Why don't you just focus on shopping? Take our minds off of it for a while." As she looked up ahead and notice a book store, her face lit up. "I like that store myself."
"Wow," Sunny laughed. "Well, if a store impresses you, then it's got to be good. You haven't glanced at a single store yet today! Let's try it out!" the girls walked together to the book store, and as they got closer, Moondancer ran inside excitedly. Sunny and Sour laughed to themselves. As much as they didn't like books or reading, they joined her.
There was a small coffee shop in the book store, so Sour and Sunny sat down to wait for Moondancer, getting some hot chocolate. After about half an hour, she returned to them with a shopping bag containing 5 or 6 books. She sat by them and put her bag on one of the chairs.
"I didn't want to keep you waiting too long," Moondancer explained. "I would have looked a bit more, but I know books are not your thing."
"It's quite alright, deary," Sunny said, taking a sip of her hot chocolate. She reached in her backpack and pulled out some papers, placing them on the table. "So, while we're here, Sunny started. "I thought maybe you could look over this assignment I had."
"Oh..." Moondancer looked a bit disappointed. "School work? Now?" Even she liked to take breaks occasionally, and just not think about the assignments. She was also reminded that she had her own homework, and Indigo Zap's as well.
"If it's okay," Sunny said. "I mean, it'll only take a minute. I don't see why it would be a problem, you know to help out a friend."
"Oh, it's not a problem," Moondancer reassured her. Sunny was right, just a minute would be alright. "Not a problem at all. What questions did you have?"
"I also have a couple," Sour Sweet spoke up as she got her homework out and handed it to Moondancer. "If you wanna help out, that is. Just a little bit of friendly guidance. Yes, or no?"
Moondancer paused. As much as she didn't want to, she would not let down her friends when they needed her. "Let me look at Sunny Flare's first." She said, taking the papers.
~.~.~.~.~.~.~
It had been 45 minutes by the time they were finished. It turned out they had more questions than they had planned, and those questions led to other questions. Finally, Sour and Sunny took the papers back and put them away.
Moondancer looked at her watch. It was 5:00, she had about another hour until she had to get home and started with the other homework. "Hm, do you want to do something else?" she asked her friends. "We could go have some ice cream or something."
Sunny looked a bit surprised. "Oh, uh..." she trailed off as she and Sour looked at each other.
"We've got a lot to do," Sour finally replied.
"But we just did 45 minutes of your homework in the mall," Moondancer pointed out. "What have you got to do?" she didn't want to accuse them; she really was just curious.
"Chores," Sour replied a little too quickly.
"Watching my little um, sister," Sunny said nervously. "My parents are going out."
Moondancer thought they were behaving a bit- well, more than a bit strangely, but she just couldn't figure out why. "Oh, I see," she said. "Maybe another day?"
"Yeah, definitely," Sour Sweet nodded, smiling sweetly. "Tomorrow maybe, we'll see. Later." They got up and grabbed their bags, then headed for the mall exit. Moondancer stared after them, only then remembering that Sunny had mentioned she had no siblings. She would ask her about it later. Maybe she had step-siblings. There had to be some reasonable explanation.
She got up and started walking home carrying her shopping bag, it was about 10 minutes from the mall. She was excited to organize her new books, her room was turning into a library at this point. But that was a good thing in her eyes. She sighed.
If only I wasn't the one who did 45 minutes of homework. Now with my own and Indigo Zap's as well.
~.~.~.~.~.~.~
Moondancer trudged through the halls of Crystal Prep. She had slept well, but still felt emotionally exhausted. She knew she would have to see Indigo Zap again today, and she wasn't looking forward to it at all.
She must have looked off, because her mom had asked if she slept well. I can't tell anyone what's going on...
Sunny Flare approached her, waving cheerfully. "Hi, Moondancer," she greeted her, but as she got closer her expression changed to one of concern. "You look really tired. Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine," Moondancer lied.
"Good," Sunny replied. "I never got to thank you for all your help yesterday at the mall. You really are a rare friend to come by, you know? I really feel a lot better about getting up and coming to school these days knowing you're here to help me whenever I need it."
"Of course," Moondancer said. Then she remembered what they talked about at the mall yesterday. "So, how about ice cream this afternoon?"
"I still have to uh...decide," Sunny replied nervously. "Sour Sweet is out sick today, so we need to take her homework to her." She frowned. "It's a shame she has to do so much school work while she's sick with such a bad cold."
"Yeah, it is," Moondancer nodded slowly, hoping this wasn't going where she thought it was. "Sorry to hear."
Sunny stared off in thought for a moment, then gasped as she got an idea. "Wait!" she exclaimed. "You know what would make her the happiest girl in the world?"
"If we bring her ice cream?" Moondancer suggested. "Sing her songs? Have a girls sleepover night?"
"Yeah yeah," Sunny waved her hand, dismissing the ideas. "But I was thinking maybe if her homework was all done for her! Oh my gosh, I hate to ask you, but do you think you could help me? You and I together could finish her assignments for her, and we can do ours at the same time."
"Actually, um..." Moondancer hesitated. Maybe now was the time to speak up, and tell her the truth. Well, not the entire truth. As she was about to speak, she thought against it. Sour Sweet was sick, and if she said no, then Sunny might try to make her feel guilty. Sunny was right, and Sour Sweet could use the help today. Just once more. "Well, I guess so." She agreed.
"Lovely!" Sunny exclaimed happily. "We can do it at the ice cream shop, then I'll take it to her place and surprise her."
"And we can take her ice cream, too," Moondancer added.
"Sounds like a plan," Sunny said, hugging Moondancer. "She's going to feel so relieved."
The hug lasted a few seconds, then Sunny let go and smiled at Moondancer, but she noticed Moondancer was not smiling in return.
"Sunny, um..." Moondancer began. She could at least express how she had been feeling. Sunny Flare was her friend! She would understand. "I really need to ask you something that's been on my mind."
"Of course, deary," Sunny said. "I'm all ears. For the next 8 minutes of course, then we need to hurry off to class."
Moondancer paused for a minute, then laughed nervously, adjusting her glasses. "Please don't take it the wrong way," she started. "But...I feel like you and Sour Sweet sometimes...you know, care a lot about homework." This was coming out all wrong. "And of course, I do too, but..." she took a deep breath. "That's not why you made friends with me, is it?"
Sunny Flare gasped, surprised her friend would even think such a thing. "What?! No, no, no, don't even say that. We love you, bestie!"
"That's what I thought," Moondancer said, relieved. That was not so hard. "Just making sure. So...if I say, stopped helping you with your homework...nothing would change in our friendship?" There was a long pause.
Sunny stuttered a bit, before answering. "Why is that even a question? The answer is yes, of course, but I know you wouldn't do that. I mean, friends help friends so that would make it kind of...I don't know, weird. You know, for all that we do for you for you to just quit helping us with something we really need, and you can easily help us with."
Moondancer blinked. She thought Sunny Flare had understood. "You think it's...easy?"
"Yeah," Sunny replied. "You're a genius."
Moondancer took a deep breath, taking a moment to find the right words. "...I wasn't born that way, Sunny Flare." She explained. "I work very hard every day to be at the top, well, almost top of the class. I completely believe that I'm not succeeding by chance. I work hard to get where I am, and where I have."
"Okay, I get it," Sunny said, though Moondancer wondered if that was true. "But that question you asked, that was just like a 'what if' question, right deary? You wouldn't really leave us to do something we struggle with, would you?"
Moondancer paused. "No. I wouldn't."
"Great," Sunny said. "I'm gonna run to the ladies' room, and I will see you in class. I really value you as my friend, in every way Moondancer. Don't forget that!" Sunny hugged her once more before walking away. Moondancer didn't know how to feel. Sunny could just be saying that, and there was only one way to know for sure if they were loyal friends or not.
Moondancer was just about to get her books, when she noticed someone walking towards her. She glanced over and was suddenly confused. It was Sugarcoat, and she looked like she had something to say. There was a moment of silence, then Moondancer spoke up first.
"Um...hello?" Moondancer greeted awkwardly.
"I've decided to take your offer," Sugarcoat told her.
"Well, my parents think I need more social interaction," Sugarcoat explained. Now it made more sense. "My mind went immediately to your offer of friendship. Does it still stand?"
"Yes, it does," Moondancer said, smiling. "I'm glad to hear that!"
"And it seems like we share a lot of the same interests," Sugarcoat continued. "Studying and being successful. I was listening, by the way. We share similar ideas on life. I think a friendship between us has a strong chance of success. So, let's do it." Moondancer hugged her tightly, not getting a hug in return, but she hadn't expected it.
"Okay, then," Sugarcoat said, waiting for the hug to end.
Moondancer let go. "It's what friends do!" She laughed slightly, and saw Sugarcoat smile for the first time since meeting her. "Did you just...smile?"
"Yes, seems like I did," Sugarcoat stated. "I am a person too, you know, despite what Sunny Flare and Sour Sweet might have been telling you."
"I knew there was more to you," Moondancer said. "You just needed someone to reach out. Let's walk together-"
"Hey!" a voice cut her off...that voice. Indigo Zap walked up to the 2 girls and looked at Moondancer nicely. "Can I talk to you?"
"I'll see you in the classroom," Sugarcoat told Moondancer as she went around the corner, leaving them alone.
"It's right in my bag," Moondancer whispered, searching through her backpack.
"I know, give over," Indigo said, trying to hurry her along. Moondancer gave her the papers once again. This had been going on for 4 days now.
"Why are you doing this to me?" Moondancer asked.
Indigo laughed. "What kind of stupid question is that? I thought you were so smart. I don't have time for all this lame stuff like school work. I'm practicing for the big basketball game this weekend. That's what you're here for."
Moondancer took a deep breath. This had been going on for too long. She had to try. "This isn't allowed, you know."
"Okay," Indigo said casually, flipping through the pages. "And your point?"
"I could tell on you," Moondancer said quietly.
Indigo looked up from the papers, and Moondancer knew she had done the wrong thing. Indigo trapped Moondancer against the lockers, placing her arms on both sides of her. "I don't think you wanna do that." Moondancer's heart was beating rapidly now, and she was just hoping someone would come to her rescue.
"Don't even get started with me," Indigo warned her. "You know what I'll do to you if you get me in trouble. Your stupid glasses won't be the only thing that's broken. Well, I don't need to say any more, do I?"
"No," Moondancer choked out. "I won't tell." She was just grateful Indigo wasn't going to hurt her in that moment.
"It's for your own good," Indigo reminded her, releasing her and leaving for the classroom. Moondancer stood there regaining her breath, then she heard footsteps from behind her. She turned around quickly, but relaxed when she saw it was only Sugarcoat. Hopefully, she wouldn't notice Moondancer's panicked behaviour.
"You're doing Indigo Zap's homework for her."
"Ssh!" Moondancer shushed her, looking around to see if Indigo was still in the area. "Oh my gosh, if I tell anyone-"
"You didn't tell anyone," Sugarcoat pointed out. "I overheard. She was talking way too loudly. This is illegal, and it needs to stop."
Moondancer started tearing up, wondering if she should open up or not. After a moment, she decided it was okay. "We can't, it...I mean, it's too late. I've already been doing this for a whole week, and they'll ask me why I didn't tell them sooner-"
"And you can tell them the truth," Sugarcoat explained. "You were scared of her."
"But do you think they'll believe me?" Moondancer asked, even though she probably wouldn't believe Sugarcoat if she said yes. In that moment, Sunny Flare came in with Sour Sweet not far behind her.
"Hey, Moony!" Sunny greeted her. "Ready for class?"
"She needs to talk to you," Sugarcoat told Sunny. Everyone was silent for a minute, then Sugarcoat looked back to Moondancer. "Tell them first. Your friends will believe you if anyone will."
Moondancer felt like she couldn't breathe. Maybe that was more of an excuse. She was so disappointed in herself, and she knew they would be, too. "No, I can't." she said, her voice sounding much shakier than she intended.
"What's wrong?" Sunny asked worriedly, taking Moondancer's hand. "Moondancer, why are you trembling? Have you been crying?"
Moondancer finally let herself cry, tears streaming down her cheeks. "It's a long story," she said, wiping her tears.
"Come, you need to sit down deary," Sunny instructed her as they walked a little ways. Sunny helped Moondancer to sit down on a bench and held her close. Sour and Sugarcoat stood next to them. "Did someone hurt you?" Sunny asked.
"No," Moondancer answered quickly. "But she...she's been..." she looked up at Sugarcoat and sniffled. "Sugarcoat, can you?"
"Alright," Sugarcoat nodded. "Indigo Zap has been using Moondancer to do her homework for her." The other girls eyes went wide.
"That jerk!" Sunny exclaimed. "How long has this been going on?" she asked Moondancer.
"About a week," Moondancer replied. "I had no choice, and she said if I told anyone she would..." Moondancer couldn't repeat the words. She sighed. "Well, let's say it's not very pleasant. And I feel so horrible about it."
"This is not your fault," Sunny reassured her. "Do you understand? We're going to make sure she never comes near you again. Come on, let's go, we can tell the principal about it." She got up from the bench, taking Moondancer's hand to help her up.
"Yeah," Sour Sweet agreed. "Indigo is gonna be in big trouble. Serves her right."
"But if she ever is alone with me," Moondancer trembled. "And she's gonna hate me so much after this...no, we can't tell anyone."
"You can't keep doing this," Sunny said firmly. "We're going to fix this sweetie." She pulled Moondancer into another hug, and Moondancer hugged her back. She was so grateful to have friends like this, who were always looking out for her safety. Even when she thought she didn't need it. They really were the best friends in the world.
"I'm so sorry this is happening," Sunny told her. "The only thing I wish you did differently...was tell us sooner. Instead of bottling this all up. you don't need to deal with it alone anymore."
"I- I just...I didn't know if you would believe me," Moondancer stuttered. Then another thought occurred to her. "You aren't gonna tell my parents?"
"The school will most likely be contacting your parents," Sugarcoat answered. "And Indigo's too."
Moondancer started to panic again. That couldn't happen! Then her mom would find out she lied, they would know she had been doing something illegal. Moondancer's breath sped up again. "No, no, no...they'll be so disappointed in me-"
"Why would they be?" Sunny interrupted. "You did the best thing for yourself, and your safety. We all know Indigo well enough to know that she would follow through with any threats she makes. Come on, we'll all be right there with you."
Moondancer looked at the 3 girls, and took a deep breath. They wouldn't let anyone hurt her now. She nodded slowly. "Okay."
Moondancer and her parents were sitting in the living room, as they had been for the past hour or so. They had been informed of what was happening, and sat her down for a long discussion. However, they weren’t mad at her as she was expecting, but more disappointed that she felt like she couldn’t talk to them. Moondancer was relieved to say the least, and now her life could finally go back to normal…hopefully. She had been sent home early today, since she was having a panic attack in the office. She wasn’t happy to be missing out on the classes, and she hadn’t missed a day since she transferred to Crystal Prep. But even she admitted that it would do her good to go home.
“So, you’re really not mad at me?” Moondancer asked her parents once again.
“No, of course not!” her mom replied, pulling her into a hug. “We’ve told you, sweetie. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Yes,” her dad agreed. “And this other girl better be getting in big trouble. Or else you’re not going to this school anymore.”
Moondancer was quiet for a moment. “It’s been scary,” she finally spoke up.
“I know it has,” her mom said. “But please tell us if anything like this happens again. What if that girl actually did something to you?”
“I know, Moondancer sighed. “I should go to my room and do today’s-”
“Don’t worry,” her mom told her. “You have plenty of time for homework. Don’t you want to do something more relaxing?”
“It is, mom,” Moondancer replied. “I love it. I think I’m going to start.” She started off towards her room. Maybe she could also call Sunny Flare. It was 3:30, so school should be out.
~.~.~.~.~.~.~
Moondancer dropped her bag on the desk and sat down, picking up her phone. She dialed Sunny Flare and after a few seconds, she answered.
“Hey,” Sunny said. “So, Sour Sweet and I are just leaving school and you’ll never guess what’s happening to Indigo Zap.”
“Tell me everything,” Moondancer said.
“She’s getting kicked off the basketball team,” Sunny informed her.
“Really?” Moondancer said, a little too excitedly. She shouldn’t have been happy to hear about someone else’s problems, but Indigo had it coming.
“Well, just temporarily,” Sunny explained. “Only to teach her a lesson. She probably would have been expelled from school entirely if they didn’t need her so badly. It’s only for a month, but she’s absolutely distraught. And it’s lovely to see.”
“I can imagine,” Moondancer laughed.
“But she has been warned,” Sunny continued. “If she touches you even once, she’ll be expelled immediately. Oh, and her parents are really disappointed in her. The last thing I heard when they got in the car was that they were having a very serious discussion when they get home.” The 2 girls laughed.
“So, what are you doing now?” Sunny asked. “Don’t tell me you’re studying again.”
“I don’t know why everyone thinks I hate studying,” Moondancer said. “Like it’s just something to get out of the way. I love it.”
“Aww, great,” Sunny replied. “Well, in that case, um…I did have a few questions on today’s papers. Since you enjoy it so much, wanna help out a good friend?”
Moondancer felt her happiness disappear. She still had this problem to take care of…but not right now. Next time, though, she would tell them how she felt. “Oh, um…sure.” she agreed.
~.~.~.~.~.~.~
After completing her homework, and just her own today, Moondancer felt a lot better. It was around 6:00 in the evening, and she had a lot on her mind. She still wasn’t sure what to do about her friends. She didn’t want to give up on helping them, but she felt like it wasn’t her responsibility either. Unable to make a decision, she decided to talk to her mom about it.
Moondancer approached her mom as she was cooking dinner in the kitchen. “Hi, mom,” she greeted. “Do you have a minute?”
“What is it?” her mom asked.
“Well, it’s just a- a question I had about friendship,” Moondancer explained. “So…did you have a lot of friends when you were my age?”
Her mom stared off in thought for a moment, then came to an answer. “No, actually. I struggled to make friends when I was young. People would approach me, but I was very anxious, so I usually avoided it. Until I went to college, I didn’t have that many friends and still then, I only had a few. I’m not sure how much I can help you.”
“You can,” Moondancer said. “So, these few friends…what did you do with them?”
“Oh, well, all sorts of things we enjoyed,” her mom explained. “Going out to the park, going for ice cream, just staying in and watching movies, all those types of things. You can do them alone, but it’s more fun with friends.”
Moondancer thought to herself. That did sound like she and her friends…sort of. “Do friends help each other?”
“Of course,” her mom replied. “That’s what makes you even closer.”
“Okay,” Moondancer said. She was starting to believe that she had been overthinking all this time, and it was just a normal friendship. “To what extent do you help them?”
“Well, of course if it’s not good for you, then you need to stop helping,” her mom said. “Or if the things they ask for put anyone else in harm’s way, or if it’s illegal of course.”
“Oh, okay,” Moondancer replied. “So, if they call you every day for the same thing then…”
“If you don’t mind, then you can help,” her mom continued. “But if you do, then you need to speak up and let them know. For instance, ‘hey, I’m not okay with doing this anymore’. Okay?”
“Yes, I think I got it,” Moondancer said. This was about the answer she had been expecting. Then she had another thought. “But what if they’re upset that you tell them no?”
“If they are your friends, they will understand,” her mom explained. “They shouldn’t even need a reason. Real friends would never push you to do something you’re uncomfortable with or takes too much of your time.”
“Thank you, this really was helpful,” Moondancer thanked her. She walked away, heading back to her room to listen to the rest of the newest Adagio Dazzle album. She had been excited for a while, but couldn’t really enjoy it until she got these thoughts out.
“Moondancer?” her mom’s voice stopped her. She turned around. “Why did you ask me this?”
“It’s not a big deal,” Moondancer reassured her. “You gave me all the answers I needed. I’m going to my room for a while, let me know when dinner is ready.” She continued up the stairs to her bedroom, hoping her mom wasn’t too suspicious.
~.~.~.~.~.~.~
The next day was Saturday. Moondancer got up and completed her morning routine, had breakfast, and returned to her room to call Sunny Flare. She didn’t have any plans for the day herself, so she thought some quality time with her friends would do her good.
“Hello Sunny Flare,” Moondancer said. “Are you with Sour Sweet?” she knew the answer already, though. It seemed that they were never apart.
“Yes, actually,” Sunny answered. “We’re just taking a walk together around our neighborhood. What is it?”
“Well, since it’s the weekend, did you want to do something together?” Moondancer asked.
Sunny’s tone changed, and suddenly she sounded nervous. “Oh, uh…well, actually-”
“I’m sick!” she heard Sour Sweet exclaim in the background.
Moondancer tried to put the pieces together. “What? Sick? Then what are you doing walking around the neighborhood?”
“I was feeling better for a minute,” Sour Sweet replied. “But now I am, uh…very sick again. Sunny, we need to head back.”
“Oh no, that’s a shame,” Sunny said. “Well, goodbye Moondancer, I’ll call you back.”
“Wait!” Moondancer tried to get her attention, but Sunny had already ended the call. That was very strange, to say the least. Especially their almost…panicked tone of voice. She felt bad that Sour Sweet was sick again, but then she remembered she had another friend. Sugarcoat! Perhaps she would want to join her and go out somewhere. Moondancer found her contact and called her.
“Hello, Moondancer,” Sugarcoat answered. “What do you need?”
“Good morning, Sugarcoat,” Moondancer said. “It’s the weekend, and since my other friends are…unavailable, do you have any plans? Or can we do something?”
“I’m not busy at the moment,” Sugarcoat replied. “I’m going to be working on the school project in the evening.”
“Great,” Moondancer said. “I have an idea.”
~.~.~.~.~.~.~
Moondancer and Sugarcoat walked through the plaza downtown, each of them carrying a bag from the book store. She was kind of glad to have another friend who loved reading and learning new things. The plaza was quite crowded today as it was the weekend, especially close to the café they were approaching.
“So, why didn’t your other friends want to come?” Sugarcoat spoke up, looking ahead to the café.
“Sour Sweet is sick, unfortunately,” Moondancer explained. “And Sunny is apparently…taking care of her. I would have gone to hang out with them and do some calm things, but she kind of just hung up. Something must have come up, she said she’d call me back as soon as she could.”
“And when was that?” Sugarcoat asked, still keeping her eye on the café.
“Um…2 hours ago,” Moondancer realized as she looked at her watch. “Maybe Sour Sweet needs something, right? And she’s just worried, she might have forgotten.” She tried to think of every possibility. It wasn’t like her friends would just not want to hang out with her.
“Moondancer, I don’t think anyone needs to be worried,” Sugarcoat said, pointing to a table outside the café. Moondancer finally glanced over and couldn’t believe her eyes. Sunny Flare and Sour Sweet were sitting there together, having food.
“Sour Sweet doesn’t appear to be sick,” Sugarcoat pointed out.
“I- I can’t believe it,” Moondancer stuttered, in shock. What were they doing out? Why didn’t they call her? “Sunny Flare said she was-”
“Well, the most likely reason is that they were lying,” Sugarcoat interrupted. “I think they’re trying to avoid you.”
“No, it doesn’t make any sense,” Moondancer said, trying to convince herself more than anyone. The 3 of them are best friends…right? Moondancer was just hoping to wake up from this dream. The 2 girls were talking and laughing, and Sour Sweet was obviously far from being sick. Moondancer thought back to the conversation she had with her mom the night before…and finally realized what was going on. She needed answers, now. Just as she was about to walk over, a voice called from behind her.
“Hey, Moondancer,” a girl called. Moondancer turned around and fear overtook her as Indigo Zap approached her. As she got closer, Moondancer noticed that her make-up was messed up. Had she been…crying?
“What are you doing?” Sugarcoat asked Indigo as she stepped in front of Moondancer. “You can’t cause any damage to her, and you’re in enough trouble.”
“I know, I’m not going to!” Indigo exclaimed, seeming surprised that Sugarcoat would say such a thing. “Why would I want to hurt her?”
Moondancer was lost for words for a moment, but then she spoke up. “Because you said that was exactly what you would do?!”
“Oh, right,” Indigo admitted. “Well, uh…I just wanted to say that…I don’t- ugh, here.” Indigo took a paper out of her pocket and handed it to Moondancer. “My parents made me write it.”
Moondancer opened the letter and read it, Sugarcoat looking at it as well.
Moondancer, I’m sorry for asking for your help so I did not get kicked out of school.
Moondancer stared at Indigo, unable to believe that she couldn’t just own up to her actions. She was so immature. “Indigo, I think you did a little more than ‘ask’ for my help,” Moondancer said.
“Well, whatever,” Indigo replied. “Just accept it! I said sorry, okay?”
“It’s the best you’re going to get,” Sugarcoat told Moondancer. “Let’s leave it.” she looked back to Indigo. “What are you doing here at the shops anyway? Shouldn’t you be at the basketball game, or watching at least?”
“Yeah, not till later,” Indigo explained. “First, I had to track you down and give you that letter or I’d be grounded.”
“Well, alright then,” Moondancer laughed. “See you, um…later,” she waved awkwardly as Indigo took off. At least her parents were good people. She watched as Indigo got in a car and they drove off, and as she was just starting to wonder how they had found her…she remembered Sour Sweet and Sunny Flare. Moondancer quickly turned back towards the café to see what they were doing now, but they were nowhere to be seen.
“Hey, where did they go?” Moondancer asked.
“Maybe they finished,” Sugarcoat said. “Or they saw you and didn’t have an explanation, so they’re hiding.”
“I don’t know what to do,” Moondancer thought aloud.
“Well, if they’re helpful to you in anyway, just ignore it-”
“No!” Moondancer shouted, cutting Sugarcoat off. “I’m sick of this! I mean, are there even any real friends in Crystal Prep? Or does everyone just want to gain something from someone else?”
Sugarcoat waited patiently until she had finished. “For most people, it’s the second,” she replied casually.
“Well, what about you?” Moondancer asked her.
“Think about it,” Sugarcoat started. “Am I gaining anything from my friendship with you, related to school?” Moondancer thought for a minute, but couldn’t come up with anything.
“You see?” Sugarcoat continued. “I was told to make more friends, but I genuinely enjoy my time with you.”
Moondancer calmed down a little, realizing she was right. “Well, thank you.”
“Now, let’s keep shopping because no matter how much fun we’re having, I need to get home by this evening.” Sugarcoat told her. Moondancer smiled, and they continued down the path to the next store.
~.~.~.~.~.~.~
It had been a long afternoon of shopping and fun. They had decided to stop in at the café the other girls were at and get some food. Moondancer had gotten tomato soup, her favourite. It always comforted her, and she was very anxious today, but she had pretended she forgot about it. She hadn’t, though. It was about 7:00 now, and she had finished her own school project and now she was on her computer. She tried to give Sunny a few hours in the evening to get back to her, but when nothing ever came, she decided she’d waited long enough.
Moondancer picked up her phone and dialed Sunny Flare.
“Hello?” Sunny’s voice came from the other end.
“Hi, um…” Moondancer started, then looked at the clock. “It’s been 9 hours since you said you’d call me.” There was a pause.
“Moondancer!” Sunny laughed weirdly. “I am so sorry about that. You see, right after that happened, Sour Sweet…threw up! All over the sidewalk. And then I got her home to rest, but before we walked in the door, she…passed out! Right on the doormat. So, we had to uh, take her to the emergency room. It was awful. Long wait. She needed me to be right there with her. And then she was sent home, but she needs to rest tomorrow too. So, I’m sorry. I really just forgot.”
Moondancer wasn’t sure how to react to that chaotic story, seemingly put together at the last minute. “Oh…so you didn’t go anywhere else today?”
“No, why would we?” Sunny said. “She was very sick, let me tell you. and if we were going out, we would have called you, silly.”
Moondancer’s suspicions were confirmed. Sunny was outright lying. She felt tears coming, and did the only thing she could. “Okay. Bye Sunny Flare.” She hung up and put down the phone, collapsing back on her bed. She stared up at the ceiling, deep in thought. A few tears escaped her eyes, as she took a deep breath to calm down. Maybe…there was still some reasonable explanation.
What’s going on with my friends? Do they hate me? Did I do something wrong?
On Sunday afternoon, Moondancer and Sugarcoat sat at the ice cream shop near the Canterlot Mall. Moondancer was having mint chocolate chip, her favourite, and Sugarcoat had chosen just plain vanilla. They sat down outside, as it was a very nice day. There were some other restaurants nearby. Moondancer took a spoon of her ice cream, then looked over at Sugarcoat.
“I still can’t believe your favourite ice cream is just vanilla,” she said.
“I prefer vanilla with marshmallows,” Sugarcoat elaborated. “I’m very disappointed that they ran out.”
“Well, mine is excellent,” Moondancer said. It wasn’t just the ice cream, though. It was the feeling of being downtown, having the afternoon out with a great friend. She decided not to call Sour or Sunny and wait for them to reach out to her, and all she had gotten was a text from Sunny Flare.
“So, how is Sour Sweet feeling?” Sugarcoat asked, glancing around.
Moondancer sighed. “She’s feeling better, but not enough to go out anywhere. She’s lost her voice, so she can’t talk on the phone. And Sunny could only text me, because Sour Sweet was sleeping. I don’t know why she didn’t just go in another room.”
“They’re very strange,” Sugarcoat said. “And they’ve been friends for a long time. If you notice, they’re rarely apart from each other, especially in school.”
“Yeah,” Moondancer agreed. She has been noticing that a lot more recently. “Maybe it’s just hard for them to accept me, but they were so nice at first.”
“And what was your first time meeting them like?” Sugarcoat questioned.
“It was my first day in school,” Moondancer explained. “Sour Sweet was a bit…sour, but later she apologized and she and Sunny talked to me about class.”
Sugarcoat didn’t hesitate to share her thought. “Moondancer, I think they’re using you.”
“No, they’re not,” Moondancer immediately denied, though she wasn’t completely sure.
“It makes sense,” Sugarcoat told her. “You’re blinded by friendship.”
“I asked them!” Moondancer exclaimed, still trying to defend her friends. “I asked them one day if they would still be friends with me if I stopped helping them, and the answer was yes.” She stopped for a moment, placing her ice cream on the table and looking around, debating whether to say what she was thinking or not. “Maybe you’re jealous of my friendship with them.”
“Believe me, Moondancer,” Sugarcoat began, getting up and grabbing her purse. “There’s nothing to be jealous of. You’ll see what I mean.” She took her ice cream cup and walked off towards the parking lot.
“Where are you going?” Moondancer called, but Sugarcoat was already gone. Moondancer sighed, regretting what she had said. She turned around to toss her empty ice cream cup, but what she saw made her stop and gasp. At the restaurant just across the street, sat Sunny Flare and Sour Sweet. “What the heck?”
“Told you so!” Sugarcoat called as she got in her car.
Moondancer couldn’t believe it. Sugarcoat knew! That was why she brought it up in the first place! She looked back over and the girls were still there, it looked like they had yet to order. She had some time. Moondancer crossed the street and stayed out of their sight, hiding around the corner. It was fairly busy, but she could hear their voices, at least. She would never eavesdrop normally, but she had to know what was going on. And if they weren’t going to tell her, then this was the last option.
The 2 girls didn’t say much until they received their food. Sunny had gotten a slice of pizza, and Sour Sweet had gotten spaghetti. As the waitress was about to leave, Sour stopped her.
“Hey! This spaghetti is inedible!” she exclaimed. “There is so much sauce, I can’t even- ugh! It’s awful!”
“No offense,” the waitress replied. “But you asked for extra sauce-”
“Well, not like only sauce!” Sour cut her off. “There are like 2 noodles in here! I need a new one, or your reviews online are gonna suck. I have several accounts.”
Moondancer gasped, unable to believe how horribly Sour Sweet was treating the girl. She could see how upset the waitress was, and she looked to be around the same age as them.
“Okay, sorry about that,” the girl said as she picked up the plate of what looked like perfect spaghetti, and returned inside the building. After a minute, Sunny started eating, and Sour tapped her foot impatiently. Moondancer was about to go up and talk to them, but Sour Sweet finally spoke up.
“How’s your homework coming?” she asked Sunny.
“Not very good,” Sunny replied.
“Well?” Sour said, looking around, then lowering her voice just in case. “Just call that girl and get some help!”
“Moondancer? I don’t know, I think she may be onto us,” Sunny said. Moondancer’s heart sank. “Yesterday, on the phone I made up a story about you being sick and going to the emergency room. Then she asked me if we went anywhere else and I said no, and then she hung up on me.”
“I told you I thought I saw her at the café,” Sour argued.
“I know, I forgot, okay?” Sunny replied.
“But she’s still friends with us, right?” Sour asked. “I mean, in her point of view anyway.”
Sunny Flare laughed. “Yeah, for a minute there, I thought you were worried about her. No way, we’re her only good friends. We’re all she has in this place. I just like to space out the homework questions so she doesn’t get suspicious.”
“That’s smart,” Sour said. “Our grades really have improved since she started helping us out. But I just cannot be seen out with her, you know? She’s not pretty, and those glasses are just the worst.” Moondancer’s heart was shattered.
“Yeah, right?” Sunny laughed with her. “Well, I’m running out of excuses to keep her away when we don’t need her, so we need to come up with something.”
Nothing else was said after that for about 5 minutes. Moondancer tried to hold back the tears, but it was no use. She was completely right, and she didn’t even want to be. It had been going on forever. They never liked her at all, but actually hearing the words…that was the worst. She wanted to run home and just cry, and never talk to anyone again. But she didn’t. She had to face them, and put an end to everything.
Moondancer slowly approached the table, wiping tears from her eyes. The 2 girls were looking at their phones, and didn’t even notice her. “Um…”
The 2 girls gasped and turned around, looking absolutely shocked to see her. They were quiet for a minute.
“H-hi Moondancer!” Sunny spoke up, completely flustered. “What a weird coincidence, what a small world it is! I didn’t expect to see you here today!” she laughed nervously.
“How long have you been here?” Sour asked.
“…the whole time.”
The 2 girls looked at each other, instantly feeling guilty for their words. Sour Sweet couldn’t make eye contact with Moondancer again, but Sunny looked directly at her, looking like she was about to cry herself…but not from heartbreak. Rather, from being caught.
“I know everything,” Moondancer choked out, new tears flowing. “How…how could you?”
“Moondancer, dearie,” Sunny got up and approached her, thinking she could still fix this somehow. “We just-”
“No!” Moondancer cried, stepping back. “No more! I don’t want to hear it! There is no way you can explain and there is no way I’ll ever trust you again! I- I…” There were no words left to say. There was no way to explain how she felt right now, and it wouldn’t matter to them even if there was. She couldn’t even look at them anymore, and ran away sobbing. The girls may have tried calling to her, but she didn’t hear them.
Sunny gave up and sat down at the table, looking at the ground.
“Well, now you done it!” Sour yelled. “How are we supposed to get ahead now?!”
“I’ll think of something.”
Moondancer ran down the sidewalk, tears clouding her vision. Her house was just 10 minutes away; she could make it. Right now, she just had to make it home safely…and never go out again. As she slowed her pace a little bit, still making sure to be careful when crossing the street, she noticed a few people looking at her strangely. She could care less at the moment, though. Her life was ruined. How could she ever go to Crystal Prep again, or make another friend again? She wouldn’t. She never, ever wanted this to happen again.
She finally made it home, opening the door and slamming it closed, getting the attention of her parents in the living room.
“Hey, sweetie,” her dad called to her. She couldn’t face them now, running past and up the staircase. “Hey, who are you running from?”
“Moondancer, what’s the matter?”
Moondancer heard her mom call to her distantly as she slammed her door shut, and flopped on the bed, still sobbing. Sunny Flare and Sour Sweet’s words replayed in her mind, over and over.
“She’s not pretty, and those glasses are just the worst.”
She took off her glasses and threw them on the floor, collapsing back on the bed. She stared at the ceiling, trying to calm her breath. This wouldn’t make anything better, that’s what she tried to convince herself. It was over. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, bringing her out of her thoughts.
“Moony? Are you alright?” her mom called to her. Moondancer heard another knock, and then someone trying to open the locked door handle. She sniffled, rubbing her eyes with a tissue, then getting up slowly and walking to the door. After a moment, she opened the door and saw her parents outside, worry plastered all over their faces. Seeing them so concerned about her made her start crying again, and caused her mom to hug her tightly.
“Tell us what’s wrong,” her dad said.
“Just give her a minute,” her mom told him. “I’m sure it’s got to do with what I was telling you,” she whispered.
~.~.~.~.~.~
Moondancer sat with her parents on the bed in her room, her eyes red from crying. Her mom handed her another tissue and she wiped her eyes. Finally, she felt ready to open up.
“It’s…it’s those girls,” she started. “Sunny Flare and Sour Sweet, they… they don’t like me.”
“What happened?” her mom asked. “What did they do?”
Moondancer took a deep breath. “They…they only made friends with me, so…so I would help them with studying. I’ve kind of known it for a while but I just didn’t want to admit it. I always made excuses for them but there’s no excuse now. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
“They don’t deserve to be friends with a special girl like you,” her mom told her, looking into her eyes. “Okay?”
“I don’t ever want to make friends again,” Moondancer sobbed. “I’m done.”
“Now don’t talk like that,” her dad said. “There are a lot of good people out there.”
“No!” Moondancer shouted.
“We should give her some time to get over this,” her mom told him.
“I will never get over it,” Moondancer shook her head, looking down. “They betrayed me. I’ve had it. I’m never, ever going to have another friend. I promise.”
~.~.~.~.~.~
Moondancer was lying in her bed that night, wide awake. It was almost 11:00, and she hadn’t slept a wink. She studied for a while in the evening, and that took her mind off things but only for the moment. This was going to last for a long time.
She didn’t need friends. She was good enough on her own. She would put all of her time into her own life and her own studies, and no one would hurt her ever again.
~.~.~.~.~.~
The next day was a Monday, which meant Moondancer had to go back to Crystal Prep. She wasn’t looking forward to seeing Sunny Flare or Sour Sweet, but she would just avoid them if they came up to her.
“Moony!” Sunny called out to her from across the hallway. “Please listen to us!” Sunny and Sour ran up to her, but she looked down at the book she was holding.
“Stay away from me,” she said defensively. “I have things to do.”
“We’re so sorry,” Sunny apologized. “I know there is no excuse for the way we talked about you but we really do miss you, I promise.”
“Yeah, like your promise means anything,” Moondancer raised her voice as she looked at them for the first time. “You are liars, now leave me alone.” She walked away from them, not looking back. There was no way she would ever trust them again. As she reached her locker, she saw Sugarcoat at her own, just down the hallway.
“Sugarcoat…” Moondancer started. “You were right about them.”
“I know,” Sugarcoat said. “So, would you still like to be friends?”
Moondancer thought for a moment. Sugarcoat hadn’t done anything to her, but friendship was not something she was ready for at this point. “I’m sorry, but I think I’m going to be taking a good long break from friendship,” Moondancer explained. Sugarcoat nodded, not saying anything. She went back to organizing her books, not seeming too affected by it. Moondancer picked up her books and headed to class early, so she could find a seat far away from Sour Sweet and Sunny Flare.
It had been a month since the day Moondancer’s friends betrayed her, the worst day of her life. Now it was the middle of November, and she still hadn’t gotten over it. Well, she would probably never get over it completely. She had been studying nonstop, and even talked to her parents less.
Moondancer sat in her room at the desk as usual, going through her books. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
“Come in,” Moondancer said indifferently.
Her mom came inside. “Hello, Moony. How are you doing?”
“Fine,” she said, not looking up from the desk.
“Do you want any help?” her mom asked.
“No,” Moondancer said.
“Okay,” her mom replied, realizing she wasn’t up for talking at the moment. “Well, dinner is ready. Do you want to come?”
“In a minute,” Moondancer said.
Her mom paused. “You should come now, while it’s hot,” she insisted.
“I’m nearly done,” Moondancer replied. “Just a minute.”
“Okay,” her mom said, leaving the room and closing the door. This wasn’t going to work. Moondancer’s dad was coming up the stairs, just as her mom turned around. She sighed. “What are we going to do? She’s in a depression because of what those girls did to her.”
“Well, what makes her really happy?” he asked.
“It was her friends,” she said. “But now…I’m not quite sure.”
“Well, who does she have posters of all over her room?” her dad asked.
“Adagio Dazzle, her favourite singer,” her mom answered. “She listens to her music all the time too, but…it doesn’t seem to make a difference.”
“What if we took her to a concert?” he suggested, getting his phone out of his pocket.
“Right, like Adagio Dazzle would come to our town at such a convenient moment,” her mom said sarcastically.
“Not our town, but one pretty close by,” he said, holding up his phone. On the screen, there was a post from Adagio Dazzle about a list of concert dates. “Here, she’s performing only an hour away from here.”
“Really?” her mom’s face lit up. “Oh my gosh, this would make her so happy! She’s always dreamed of seeing Adagio live. Get the tickets right now! What date is it?”
“Next Sunday,” he said. “1 week away.”
“Wonderful,” she replied, lowering her voice. “Let’s not tell her, and make it a surprise. I can’t wait to see how happy she is!”
~.~.~.~.~.~
1 week later, Moondancer went to bed thinking of all the studies she had to do for the day. She was going to reorganize her bookshelf, and work on the school project. But when she woke up on Sunday morning, she felt just horrible. Her nose was stuffy and she had a sore throat. She coughed harshly, getting up to go and do her morning routine. Of course, with all the dropping temperatures going into the winter soon, her immunity would be weaker. She had a cold.
After finishing her routine, she made her way downstairs to try and have some breakfast. She just made it to the bottom of the stairs when she coughed again, and it didn’t sound very good. Her parents looked from the dining room to see if she was alright.
“Are you okay?” her dad asked worriedly.
“Actually, I’m not feeling very well,” she admitted, sniffling.
“Aww, I’m sorry to hear that,” her mom replied.
“Yeah, I think if I just stay home today I’ll be fine,” Moondancer said.
Her mom was about to agree, but then it hit her what today was. “Wait!” she exclaimed. “Stay home? Today?!”
“Did you plan on going somewhere?” Moondancer asked.
“No,” her mom said. “I mean…well, are you sure you don’t want to go out?”
“Yeah, I’m sure,” Moondancer said. “I just want to stay here. I’m going to my room.” To be honest, she didn’t feel like having any food after all. She went back up to her room to read her books in bed, with a box of tissues, hoping this wouldn’t last too long.
“This is a disaster,” her mom said.
“She could still feel better by this evening,” her dad commented. “She just says that now.”
“Ohh, now it’s not going to be a surprise!” her mom realized. “We’ll have to tell her to get her to go. And what if she really is too sick to go? Oh, and with all the noise and lights, what if she faints? Why today?”
“Hey, calm down,” her dad said. “The tickets also work for the virtual concert, so we can watch it on TV.”
“But it won’t be the same,” her mom said sadly. “Oh, you don’t understand anything. She wants to see Adagio in real life and sing with her!”
“But if it’s not good for her, we can’t take any chances,” her dad said.
“We’ll just see how the day goes,” her mom suggested.
“That’s what I said,” her dad spoke up.
Her mom shook her head. “Oh, just stop.”
~.~.~.~.~.~
The day went by slowly, since Moondancer had already finished that week’s homework and read most of the books she had. She couldn’t really clean her room since every time she moved around, she would cough or need another tissue. Eventually, she got comfortable enough to take a short nap, but that didn’t help at all except for taking up time.
That evening, she was sitting in bed listening to The Dazzlings new group album, and that made her feel just a little bit better. She had almost forgotten about Sunny Flare and Sour Sweet that day. As she was playing her favourite track again, there was a knock.
“Come in,” she said, but talking made her cough again. Her mom came in looking very worried. “Hi, mom.”
“Hi sweetie,” her mom said, looking at the pile of tissues next to her. “Oh, no. you’re still sick.”
“Yes, but I think it’s just a cold,” Moondancer said. It wasn’t fun, but she didn’t want her mom to worry too much.
Her mom sat down next to her on the bed. “Moondancer…there is something I need to tell you. We know how much you love Adagio Dazzle and how much you’ve always wanted to see her live.”
“Yes?” Moondancer looked up. Was this really going where she thought it was?
“Well, she is performing a concert a few towns over and…it’s tonight,” her mom replied. “We got tickets.”
Moondancer gasped. “Really? So…we could go?!” she had seen the post from Adagio online, but thought that town was too far away.
“Well, that’s why I’ve been so worried all day,” her mom explained. “Do you think you’re feeling well enough to go?”
“Yes!” Moondancer exclaimed. “Of course, I am! Are you kidding? I’ve got to, we have to go now!” She got out from under the covers and stood up quickly, but she was dizzier than she had thought. She lost her balance and collapsed next to the bed.
“Moony!” her mom was quick to help her up. “Are you okay?”
Moondancer took a deep breath, looking around the room. Everything was fuzzy, and she probably couldn’t even make it downstairs easily.
Her mom sighed. “No, there’s no way we’ll be able to go.”
“No!” Moondancer protested. “I want to, I have to! it’s my dream! When will she ever come back again? I’m fine, let’s get going now!”
“Listen,” her mom said. “We can’t have you fainting at the concert or while walking in. We can watch it on the TV. Our tickets will get us into the online concert too.”
“But it’s not the same,” Moondancer sighed.
“I know, but it’s the best we can do,” her mom said. “Come on, we’ll make popcorn and watch it right from the living room. And we’ll all sing along, well as best as I can. I know some of her songs!” Her mom started singing one of Adagio’s hit songs, and not very well.
Moondancer burst into laughter. “Okay, mom, just stop! We’ll watch it from here.”
“Wonderful, I’ll get it all set up,” her mom said, heading downstairs. At least she had gotten Moondancer to laugh a little.
~.~.~.~.~.~
Moondancer and her parents sat on the living room couch, waiting for the concert to start. She had a bucket of homemade popcorn, and of course, her box of tissues. Once the concert started, she already felt better. It was not as amazing as being there in person, but it was still a special night with her family. She couldn’t sing along out loud, but she still had a wonderful time.
Once the concert was over, Moondancer was going back up the stairs with the help of her mom. That was not a very good place to get dizzy, after all.
“So, did you enjoy it?” her mom asked, though she knew the answer.
“I loved it,” Moondancer said. “It really did feel like we were there with her, and besides, it’s the thought that counts.” When they reached her bedroom door, she gave her mom a tight hug. “Thank you so much. I feel really happy now. Besides, your popcorn is probably better than anything they have there.”
“Of course, I’m so glad it made you feel better,” her mom smiled. “Now get some rest.”
~.~.~.~.~.~
The next few weeks were about the same. Moondancer would go to school, avoid talking to anyone, especially Sunny Flare and Sour Sweet. She always made sure to sit far away from them in class and in the cafeteria. They hadn’t tried to talk to her again, knowing it wouldn’t do any good. Even if they were sincere in their apologies, Moondancer didn’t care at this point. She wanted nothing to do with friendship, and it was just a distraction. Maybe it all happened for the better.
Moondancer’s life was back on track. She wasn’t going to let anyone distract her anymore. The holiday break was coming soon, but it didn't mean much for her. She would take the time off to get ahead in her studies. She couldn’t focus on anyone else's lives, because she had her own. And she would be just as successful, but in her own way.
