Chapter One
X=49...X=12...X does not exist...
As you skim over your latest assignment one last time, you begin to smile to yourself. You have no doubts in your mind that it's pretty much perfect, but you still like to look over your papers just one last time before they're taken up. A sort of assurance, you tell yourself.
That, and it helps pass the time. Class doesn't start for another ten minutes or so. Why you like to show up so early is beyond you. You're usually here a good thirty minutes before any other students arrive. With this being your first class of the day, there's no real reason to show up this early. Even more so for you, seeing as you live not five minutes from the school.
You chalk it up to habit. It just helped put you on the good side of all your teachers anyway. Plus, it allowed you to ensure all your assignments and other papers were in order for when they are needed. Such as right now, for instance. With your paper illuminating by the magic of your horn, you slowly lift the document upwards, quickly scanning each and every problem. With math being your forte, you're fairly certain that there are no errors. Still, doesn't hurt to take another look.
C=52°...Alright! you think to yourself. Everything's perfect!
Sighing lightly, you push the paper aside and simply opt to wait for class to begin. The light filtering into the room through the blinds brightens the room with a golden glow. With Fall just now getting into full swing, the daylight grew slightly more scarce with each passing day. All the desks around you are sitting neat and tidy, thanks to the slightly OCD nature of your teacher. You can hear a bustle of activity beginning to brew in the hallways as the school slowly comes to life.
Sitting at the back of the room, you lean back and wait. You didn't really choose the seat you are in, but your teacher personally asked you to move to the back. Easily having the highest grade of your class, he figured you wouldn't need to be up front, and opted to move students who could use a little boost to the front instead. You didn't really mind. It's not like your grade was suffering as a result or anything.
Students begin to trickle into the room at a slow rate. You don't heed them much mind, as you see them practically every day. You aren't exactly friends with many of them, as you've always been more focused on your schoolwork than being a socialite. Even then, you are on relatively good terms with most students.
"Hey, hey, what's up, dude?"
And those that you are "friends" with? It's usually for the wrong reasons.
Looking over to the colt who just batted your shoulder, you find the familiar face of your friend Blow Torch. Or, as he prefers to be called, just Torch. You have only known him for the last couple of years, having met him during your sophomore year. The dark coated colt with the cool blue mane isn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but he isn't entirely stupid. He is a complete wiz when it comes to welding, smelting, and virtually any and all things relating to metals. Though he is among the top in his shop classes, he's not too keen on subjects like math and literature.
Which is where you come in.
"Morning. How're you doing?" you reply simply. You already know where this is most likely going.
"Pretty good, dude." he says, as he takes the seat to your left. "You get that homework done last night?"
You give him your usual 'are you serious' look. "As if I'd forget, right?" You levitate up the paper in question.
"Ah, nice. Got mine, too!" he says, lifting a similar paper out of his bags and presenting it to you.
You can feel your eyes widen in genuine surprise. "Wow, really? For once it isn't gonna be a copy of mine?"
He gives a cocky smile. "Yup. I ain't in need of your help all the time."
You raise an eyebrow before taking his paper with the grip of your magic. Bringing the paper up to your eyes, you skim over his answers, only to feel yourself growing more and more sympathetic for your friend. You fight the urge to shake your head at some of his scribbles and "equations." You wonder how he would have made it to senior year without you.
"Yeah..." you start. "Don't need me at all."
"Told you, dude." he says with a haughty air.
You roll your eyes at his little attitude. Though you have to give him a bit of credit; he actually tried for once. His attempts at doing his homework usually revolve around coming to you three minutes before class starts and frantically copying your answers. Why you allow him to, you're still not sure.
As you open up your bag again, the familiar sound of the school bell rings, signaling the start of another day. All of the other students quickly take their seats, trying to look as though they are busy to appease the teacher. You can't help it as you lightly chuckle to yourself.
Looking over to the other end of the room, you realize you may have misjudged the volume of your laughter. You find yourself on the receiving end of a menacing stare from the one and only Jack Hammer. The resident tough guy of the school, he likes no one and no one likes him, just how he prefers it. Sporting a leather jacket over his large, stone-gray body and a short cut brown mane, he stares at you with all the hatred he can conjure up in his dark gray eyes.
You aren't on bad terms with him, per se. He just doesn't like you, similar to how he dislikes pretty much everyone else. You give him a small smile as a sort of peace offering. He simply snorts and returns his attention to the front of the room. You decide to do the same, and just in time too. Your teacher has just entered the room. Sporting his usual tie and square-rimmed glasses, he skims his eyes over the room as he arranges his desk.
"Morning, class!" he says with his usual, early morning enthusiasm.
The class returns his enthusiasm with the usual, half-baked vocalizations of recognition. You simply nod your head in respect for him.
"Alright, no dilly-dallying!" he barks. "First things first! Pass up the homework, let's go, chop chop!" He always speaks with a very fast-paced tone, giving him a sense of constant urgency.
Pulling out your homework as (most) everyone else does the same, you hold it up in the air with your magic. You make certain that he can see your paper clearly. If he can't see it in the air, he'll end up passing over you when he does his magic sweep of the room. Everyone else in the class who has their work does the same, including Torch.
After a brief period of waiting, the teacher, who goes by the name of Mr. Hemlock, activates the magic of his horn. A wave of purple cascades over the students, swiftly illuminating all the papers currently being held in the air. Once the wave hits the back of the room, it quickly retracts back to his horn, dragging all the papers within its grasp to the stallion. Readjusting them with his magic, he looks pleased to find that most of his class managed to turn their papers in.
"Alrighty!" he says as he sets the papers on his desk. "With that out of the way, I have an announcement!"
He begins to trot over to the door of the classroom, all the heads in the room turning to follow his movement. You feel an eyebrow raise as you watch him move.
"Come on in!" he says to the hall outside.
With a short pause, a pony begins to trot through the door. A mare, more specifically.
"Everypony, I'd like you to meet our newest student!" he says before turning his attention to the mare beside him. "Care to introduce yourself?"
She nervously looks around the room, her teal eyes scanning over all the faces before her. Atop her head is a curly mane consisting of two separate shades of blue. Her coat is a pale cream color and a slew of freckles dot her face. Most of her body is covered up by a long white dress which wraps tightly around her torso as the rest of the fabric hangs loosely over her, hiding her tail, flank, and hind legs from view. Only the tips of her tail and hooves are visible, and they seem to be the same shades as her mane and body respectively. Slung over her back are a pair of brown saddlebags with star-shaped latches holding them shut.
After a brief moment of examining, she speaks. "H-Hello, everypony!" You notice that her voice is a tad shaky, and she talks in a fairly hushed tone. "My name is M-Milky Way..."
A snort from the other end of the room draws your attention over to Jack, who sits with his forelegs crossed in front of him. He looks upon her with a fairly displeased expression. It's about the same look he gives to just about everyone. Looking back to the new mare, you can see her visibly flinch at his gaze.
"Mr. Hammer," Hemlock quips. "Do you have something you would like to say?"
The colt in question just sneers. "Nothin' at all, sir."
Giving him a harsh look, Mr. Hemlock returns his attention to the mare. "We're glad to have you here, Ms. Way. Feel free to take a seat wherever you like!"
"Th-Thank you, sir." she says, nodding all the while.
Mr. Hemlock smiles in return and begins to trot over to his desk. You watch as the mare looks around the room again, examining all of the desks. You decide to follow suit, and turn your head to the left to scan your eyes over all of the other desks as well. The first thing that you notice is that none of them are free.
Looking back to the mare, she has apparently found the one desk in the room that is available. The desk that just so happens to be immediately to your right. Shifting your gaze from the open desk back to her, you find her hesitating in her steps as she notices you looking at her. Her eyes shift about uncomfortably as she slinks backward slightly.
Not wanting to intimidate her, you give her a genuine smile. You attempt to reassure her, nodding your head in the direction of the desk. Her eyes widen a little bit before she gives a sheepish smile. She then continues her walk to the desk. Slinging the bags off of her shoulders, she sets them on the floor. Turning your head back to the front of the room, you can see her sitting down in her desk out of the corner of your eye. You notice that she takes a rather long time to do so, with great delicacy in the actual process of just sitting down.
You fight the urge to raise an eyebrow. Watching as Hemlock pulls out a textbook, you listen as he begins to bark out instructions.
"Alright, no dilly-dallying!" he repeats. "Everypony, open up your books to the section we started yesterday, page 279!"
Without a second thought, you conjure up your magic and bring forth the aforementioned textbook from your bag. Setting the book onto your desk, the sound of flurrying pages fills the room as every student scrambles to the indicated page. Hemlock begins scribbling numbers on the board, presumably the problems he wants you to work in class.
"Um..."
You illuminate your notebook, flipping it open to a blank page.
"Excuse me..."
Lifting your pencil into the air with your magic, you begin to copy down the numbers on the board.
"Excuse me!"
A voice snaps you out of your zone. Looking to the source of the noise on your right, you find the new mare with a hoof on her mouth and a slight blush about her cheeks.
"S-Sorry, I was going to ask if we could, I dunno, share a book?" she says, her voice just above a whisper. "I don't exactly have my own yet..."
You open your mouth to respond, but the barking voice of Hemlock beats you to it.
"Alright, I want everypony to partner up with somepony else! Finish as many of the problems as you can, let's go, chop-chop!" he yells.
The sound of desks shifting begins to fill the room as the students begin to slide around to their preferred partners. Group assignments are nothing new, and you always paired up with Torch.
Glancing over to the stallion, you find that he is currently sliding his desk in the opposite direction of yours. Looking past him, you find the desk adjacent to his is currently occupied by that mare he has been tailing for days. You give him your usual "are you serious" look and he returns your gaze with an innocent shrug.
Turning your gaze back to the mare at your other side, you find her giving you a sad, almost pleading look. Her hooves are at her chest, rubbing against each other nervously.
You give her another smile. "Sure, no problem." you say cheerily.
Her face lights up at that. "Thank you! Sorry, I thought I would be getting a book today, but..." she says before trailing off.
"It's no trouble, ah...heh heh, sorry, what was your name again?" you ask with a smile.
"Oh, it's Milky Way!" She returns your smile with one of her own.
Standing up in your desk, you begin to slide over to hers until your desks are touching. You slide your book over until its spine is at the center of the two desks. Bringing up your notebook and pencil, you resume copying down the numbers from the board onto the top of your paper.
As you write, you look over to your partner. From the edge of your vision, you see her leaning over the side of her desk furthest from you very slowly. Looking down, you find that she's reaching for her saddlebags. She wears what appears to be a strained expression on her face as she dips lower and lower.
Unable to stop your eyebrow from rising, you cough into your hoof lightly to catch her attention. She immediately snaps back up into an upright position and looks at you, her eyes wide. After a brief, awkward silence, she blushes and cups a hoof to her mouth.
"Oh, I-I just, uh..."
"Do you need help getting your bags, or something?" you ask kindly.
"Um, well..." Her voice grows quieter as she speaks. "...if you wouldn't mind..."
Without a word, you use your magic to illuminate her bags in your familiar glow, and lift them up and over her head. Placing them onto the table, you cut off your magical flow from the bags and return it to your pencil.
"There we are!" you announce proudly, for whatever reason.
"Th-Thanks..." she says, giving you another embarrassed smile. She then begins to dig through her bags, presumably searching for paper and pencil.
"Hurt your back or something?" you ask.
She stops digging at your question. "I'm sorry?"
"You seemed like you were, I dunno, hurting." you say. "When you were grabbing your bag. Is your back hurt, or something?"
Her eyes widen at that statement as she lowers her forehooves to her lap. You notice her hind legs draw closer together underneath her dress. Her ears fold back and she bites her lower lip. To top it all off, her blush increases ten fold.
"Y-Y-Yes," she stammers. "M-My b-back...is h-hurt..."
At this rate, your eyebrow is going to go through the roof. You decide to drop the subject, lest she become even more embarrassed, for whatever reason.
"Er...if you say so." you start. "So, shall we get started?"
She looks you in the eyes and perks up ever so slightly. Brushing a stray hair from her mane out of her face, she turns her body towards your desk slightly and smiles.
"O-Okay! I'll admit, I'm a bit rusty at this stuff..." she says, as she examines the problems on the page.
You give her a smile. "No sweat, it isn't too hard!"
You turn towards her slightly to better access the book. As you turn, you feel your hind hoof bump into hers lightly. The contact lasts for less than a nanosecond, but it's enough to make her jump and blush yet again. Quickly catching herself, she gives you another nervous smile and giggles lightly.
At this rate, she'll be dead of embarrassment by the end of the period...
~*~*~
"So, I use...sine?"
"No, you would use that if we were trying to find this angle."
"Oh, so...use cosine?"
"Yes! Exactly!"
Her face lights up as you tell her that her choice is correct.
Despite getting off to a slightly rocky start, the two of you quickly got a large portion of the problems done. Though she struggled with a few things, the girl was a quick learner. She was even solving some problems faster than you at some points.
The period flew by like a blur. With all the students quietly murmuring among themselves, you and Milky were left to work in peace. Hemlock was too busy grading the latest homework to bother any of you, so there were no intrusions for the entire period. Not that you were complaining of course. It was nice to be the one to get to know the new girl first.
Speaking of that girl, you find that she's just one step away from getting the answer to the last problem.
"So, now I, uh..." she says, unsure of herself. "...divide by the adjacent side?"
"Not quite," you reply. "The adjacent goes on top."
"Oh! So, I do this, then..." She punches a few numbers into her calculator before continuing. "The answer is... 0.866?"
You lean back and give her a smile. "Perfect!"
Your confirmation elicits a cute giggle from the cream colored mare. She quickly jots down the answer on her paper before directing her attention back to the book. "So...is that it?"
"Yep." you say coolly. "We're done."
"Awesome!" she says before closing up her notebook. "That wasn't too bad! Thanks for your help, too!"
"Think nothing of it." you respond. You lean forward and rest your forelegs on your desk. You notice that the other students are still hard at work. "So, we've still got some time to kill...where are you from?"
She snaps her gaze back to you at the sudden question. "Oh, w-well, I'm actually out of Maneapolis."
"Ah, I hear that town is nice. Why the sudden change?" you ask kindly.
You watch as she begins to shift uncomfortably. "I, uh...had some issues at my former school...my parents sent me here because of it."
Not one to pry, you decide to let it rest. "How are you liking the new school so far?"
"Well," she says as she begins to fiddle with her mane. "It's only the first period, so it's kinda hard to judge right now."
"True, but would you say this is a strong start?"
"Oh, yeah! Of course!" she says earnestly. "I mean, I've already picked up this class pretty well, and I got to meet you!"
Both of you go silent at that. She quickly cups a hoof to her mouth as the words escape her lips. Her blush returns with a vengeance as you feel your own cheeks heat up slightly. You can feel your eyes widen, and what's with that weird, twist-like feeling in your stomach?
"Uh...well, I'm flattered!" you say, slightly nervous.
Her blush doesn't fade in the slightest. "Y-You're welcome..."
An unsettling awkward silence falls upon the two of you. You aren't too certain of what to say, lest you make things more awkward than they already are. She seems to be in the same boat as you, fidgeting slightly in her seat and readjusting her dress. Her blush still continues to paint her face red as she avoids eye contact. You open your mouth to say something, but nothing comes out, despite how much you want to end the deafening silence.
Just when you think the silence would stretch into infinity, the school bell rings, signaling the end of the period.
"Alright, everypony!" Hemlock says. "See you all tomorrow, no homework for tonight!"
If there were ever a time where the phrase "saved by the bell" was appropriate... you think to yourself with a sigh.
You look back to Milky to find her as relieved as you. She gives you another one of her nervous smiles before she begins to stand up. You slide your desk back to its original spot and quickly gather your things with the grip of your magic. With everything packed away, you throw your bags over your back. You look over to Milky to find she has gathered up her things just as quickly.
The two of you begin to make for the front of the classroom. A fairly slow process as the other students are still moving desks, packing up, and shuffling out as well. You bring your attention back to Milky.
"So," you start. "Where are you headed next?"
"Um..." she says, as she dips a hoof into one of her bags. After a brief moment, she pulls out a single sheet of paper with tiny text. "My next class is...Sociology?"
"Really? It's a pretty cool class, I took it last year." you say as you step over a colt rooting through his bags on the ground.
"I'd hope so, I just sort of picked it at pure random." she says. "Do you know where the room is?"
You put a hoof to your chin in thought. "Yeah, when you leave this room, just take the stairs up. It's in the hallway just above us!"
"Oh, alright!" She begins to giggle, causing her curls to bounce lightly. It's kind of cute, you admit. "You're just so helpful, you know that?"
You give her a shrug. "Just common courtesy, right?"
"If you say so," she replies. "Still, you r-really are sw-" She suddenly stops in her tracks.
You stop along with her. "Milky?"
She simply stares ahead. Following the direction of her gaze, you find your eyes meeting with those of one Jack Hammer. He's giving her his trademark sidelong glare. His gaze is cold and unforgiving as he stares her right in the eyes. You nearly return his gaze with your own eyes simply out of reaction.
You look back over to Milky to see her fidgeting slightly. She lifts a foreleg and wraps it around her other. She begins to pull her head back as her whole body tenses. Her eyes begin to dart around, trying to avoid contact with his unrelenting stare.
Something inside you takes over as you return Hammer's glare with one of your own. You can't even stop it, it just sort of happens. You know well enough to not get on his bad side, yet you can't control it as you feel your eyes squint in malice towards his.
That simple gesture is enough to draw his attention from her onto you. Simply flicking his irises in your direction, he meets your stare with his own. The instant his eyes meet yours, you can feel an intense heat passing between the two of you. You met his stare with as much coldness as he put out, and you swear you could see sparks fly between yours and his eyes.
The eye contact lasts for only a brief moment, though it feels as though it lasted an eternity. Flicking his gaze between the two of you one last time, he finishes the confrontation with a simple snort and promptly leaves the room without a word.
Once he's out of sight, you breathe a silent sigh of relief. Bringing your attention back to the mare at your side, you find her shaking slightly.
"D-Did I do s-something wrong?" she asks. "Did I do something t-to make him not l-like me?"
You shake your head. "No, that's just Jack Hammer for you. He's not fond of, well, anypony."
"Oh..." she says, not sounding too relieved. Her nervousness is evident in practically her entire body. She still seems to be quite tense.
You give her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry about him too much. Just steer clear of him and you'll be fine."
She returns your smile with one of her own. "Alright...and thank you, again."
"Think nothing of it." you reply. You look around to find the classroom has mostly emptied at this point. Beckoning her with a hoof, she promptly follows you out into hallway.
Stepping out of the classroom, it's about what you expected it to look like. Students are digging into lockers, chatting it up, filing into their respective rooms, and the like. Bodies scrape against one another as students muscle their way through the crowd. The amount of chatter nearly drowns out the sound of hooves clacking on the tiled floor below. The usual dose of organized chaos in between periods.
Looking over to Milky, you find her giving you a smile.
"So, you said the Sociology room is just above us, right?" she asks sweetly.
"Yep," you reply. You point a hoof to a pair of open double doors on the other side of the hallway. "Just take those stairs up and you'll be right there!"
"Okay!" she says with a nod. "And, um, th-thank you, for all your help..." Her face begins to redden again as she gives you one of the most adorable smiles you've ever seen from a mare.
You give her a kind smile in return. "Think nothing of it."
The sound of the chatter and students all around you seems to fade out of existence for a brief moment as you stare into her eyes. Their teal sheen simply rest upon your eyes as you stare into each other for a short period. That strange twist-like feeling in your stomach re-emerges. You question if you're getting sick or something, but immediately discard the thoughts. That twist almost feels natural to you...
After a moment, she finally breaks her eyes away. Though the eye contact only lasts for but a few seconds, it still felt like forever.
"So," she starts shakily. "I-I guess I'll see you some other time?"
You give her a smile and a nod. "Yeah, of course."
"O-Okay..." she says as she begins to make for the stairs. "Well, goodbye, I guess..."
"Yeah," you respond. "I'll see you around!"
You lift a hoof and give her a short wave, which elicits a small grin from the mare. She quickly reaches the stairs and begins her ascent to the floor above. You watch as she begins to climb the stairs. Much like earlier, you notice her taking great care in doing such a simple act. It strikes you as slightly odd. Maybe it's the dress? Either way, you find yourself enraptured in her simple act of ascending stairs.
"Awwwww shi-et, son!" Your thoughts are interrupted by a familiar hoof striking your shoulder. "I see it, dude, I see it!" You look over to the source of the voice to find Torch at your side once more.
"What?" you ask, honestly confused.
"I seen it, man! I seen that look in your eyes!" he exclaims. "I didn't think you'd be jumping on that so quickly!"
"Wait, what?" you repeat.
"I know that look! In your eyes, dude!" He then wraps a hoof around your shoulder and brings you close, lowering his volume. "And hey, I don't blame ya. She's pretty cute, eh? Just somethin' about her!"
It only takes a fraction of a second for you to catch his drift. Rolling your eyes at his words, you reply. "Dude, shut up."
"Ah hahah!" he barks. "Called it! But hey, like I said, she is cute, so I can't say I blame ya!"
"Put a cork in it, Blow." you reply, purposefully opting to use his first name.
He immediately retracts his hoof from your shoulder and gives you a stern look. "You know not to call me that, man!"
"Yeah, I do."
You have a short staring contest before he gives you a spiteful smirk. Giving you one last punch in the shoulder, he simply slinks off into the sea of students. Rubbing the spot where he punched you, you chuckle slightly. If he only has one weakness, it would be his own name.
You look back to the stairs where Milky left you. Just in time to see the tip of her deep blue tail disappearing from view. Just the sight of it is enough to invoke that twist in your stomach again.
Well, if anything, Torch is right about one thing.
There's something about her...