Chapter 8: Awkward introductions

"Okay class turned the page." said Mrs. Harshwhinny.

The class groaned in complaint, but a sharp glare, shut them up quickly. Sunset Shimmer turned to page, as the instructed and looked up to the teacher as she continued another one of her boring lectures.

Despite Applejacks advice, Sunset just couldn't stop thinking about that Velvet girl. It just felt like something was...off somehow. Sunset decided not to bring up her suspisions to AJ again, because know her, Sunset's suspisions would be ridden off as "nonsense" and AJ would scold Sunset.

"Sunset?!" came a sharp voice.

Sunset snapped out her thoughts and looked up to Mrs Harshwhinny looking at her with a stern and slightly concerned face.

Sunset saw out of the corners of her eyes that Rainbow Dash and a few other students were looking at her.

"Yes?" Sunset asked.

"Are you doing your work?" Mrs. Harshwhinny asked, with an arched eyebrow.

Sunset hesitated, then nodded. "Yes. Just...have a lot on my mind right now." she answered.

Mrs. Harshwhinny closed her eyes and nodded in understanding. She opened her eyes again and spoke. "Well Miss Shimmer, if you don't complete your reading assignment in this class you'll have it for homework. Now, finish your thought and get back to reading please." she said sternly.

Sunset briskly nodded and looked at her book again.

Mrs Harshwhinny looked around to see some of the students still looking at Sunset. She snapped her fingers and said, "Never mind what Sunset's doing. Get back to work."

Meanwhile in another class a few halls away, Velvet Breeze was thinking about her next move.

She chewed on her pen cap lightly as she thought. "The Templars are already here. This is not good. Fortunately, it seems they are unaware of me, which gives me a little breathing room."

Velvet looked around at the other students. She saw that most of them were doing their work quietly, while some of them were on their phones. The teacher was going around helping the students as best she could, while trying to keep the ones that were on their phones, off.

She continued to think. "Still. I need to get something on the P.O.E." Velvet narrowed her eyes." that Sunset girl. There's something about her. She triggered the P.O.E.D. Why?"

Velvet took her pen out of her mouth and began tapping it on her cheek lightly. "I need to get closer to that Sunset girl if I'm going to find any answers." Velvet's eyes widened as she got an idea. "Perhaps if I started a friendship. Yeah. That'll work. Besides I don't think anyone would appreciate some stranger following them around all the time."

Velvet smiled lightly as this was a win-win for her. She had wanted to make friends here anyway. Now, she had an excuse.

Velvet looked at her paper. "Geography knowledge test", it read. "I'll approach Sunset at lunch. That'll start it. I'll just make it up from there, as I go along."

Just then, Mentor Steel Shine's voice made itself known in her mind. "Take care who you trust Velvet. Those who do not volunteer in our Struggle, should not be forced to fight it." the voice said.

Velvet frowned. She continued to examine her paper, and hoped she could keep her Assassin identity a secret, lest she drag her friend or friends into a war they did ask for.

Sunset Shimmer scratched an itch that appeared behind her ear.

She stood in line, awaiting her turn to pick out her lunch. She held the lunch tray in her hand as she looked around. In first period, Sunset had decided that the only way to know for sure if Velvet was a threat or not was through friendship. So here she was, looking for Velvet Breeze in the cafeteria. A part of her hoped that Velvet wasn't some magical creature, but their was still the lingering doubt in her mind; in the form of that strange feeling that Sunset had gotten the previous day.

Sunset looked around, hoping to find a hint of teal or white. She looked to her left near the back of the cafeteria and saw her friends eating their lunch.

Rarity looked up from her meal and made eye-contact with Sunset. Sunset saw Rarity give a questioning face, and mouthed "one minute" to her before gesturing the empty tray she was holding. Rarity gave a nod and went back to her lunch.

After a minute or two of moving slowly in line and unsuccessfully looking for Velvet, Sunset sighed, picked a the ladle in front of her and proceeded to scoop up a helping of mac and cheese, before moving a little bit in the line and grabbing a bit of bread and some apple juice.

Satisfied with what she had chosen for her meal, Sunset made her way through the cafeteria, to the table where her friends sat. She sat down in between Twilight and Pinkie Pie, and began eating.

As usual, Applejack was the first one to strike conversation. "So how's everything been goin' with ya'll?" she asked openly.

Rarity flipped her hair to a more comfortable position. "It's been going well. It turns out that Jason Wood is in my art class."

AJ nodded in understanding, while Rarity continued. "We spoke a little bit, just a simple 'hi. How are you?' then that's it."

AJ turned her head to see Sunset looking around the cafeteria. Curious, she spoke up. "You expectin' someone Sunset?"

Sunset turned her head toward AJ. "Hm? Oh. I'm actually looking for Velvet Breeze. I'm hoping to get to know her better."

AJ nodded. "Ah. Any luck with that?"

Sunset frowned and shook her head. "Uh-uh. Strange. I expected her to be here."

AJ pursed her lips. "Hmm. That is weird." she then narrowed her eyes. "Hold on now. This ain't got nothin' to do with you thinkin' she's gonna take over the school, now does it?" she asked.

Sunset shook her head and held up her hands in defense. "No. I just want to make friends. That's all."

AJ smiled. "Good. Cause Ah don't wanna hear none of that nonsense. There's no reason to judge a girl you know nothin' about."

"That' exactly why I want to get to know her." Sunset said, but stopped when AJ arched an eyebrow. "Uhh...that came out wrong." Sunset added, scratching her neck.

AJ closed her eyes and audible took a breath. She opened her eyes again and spoke. "Whatever. So you said you were looking for her? Sorry to say, but Ah haven't seen her around."

AJ turned to twilight. "Have you seen Velvet Breeze around?"

Twilight adjusted her glasses and shook her head. "Judging from yesterday's description Sunset, I can't say I have."

Just then, Pinkie Pie jumped up. "I know where she is!" she said happily.

Sunset's eyes widened. "Really? Where is she?" she asked.

Pinkie's right arm, which had been fully healed for a few days now, shot out in some seemingly random direction, a bit of a scar still visible from where Sunset had burned her.

A pang if guilt wormed its way through Sunset's veins, but she quickly shoved it away.

Pinkie pointed in the direction her arm was now facing and said, "Over there!"

"Where?" Sunset asked. She squinted her eyes in the direction Pinkie was pointing, searching for even the slightest hint of teal or white, but found none. "I don't see her."

"Don't worry, I'll go get her and introduce you two!" Pinkie said, and before anyone could react, Pinkie skipped over in the direction she was referring to and disappeared from sight.

Seeing Pinkie's injury reminded Sunset of Twilight's injury, so while Pinkie was gone getting Velvet Breeze so she and Sunset could be formally introduced, Sunset decided to ask Twilight about her wrist.

"Hey Twilight." Sunset said.

Twilight turned her head in Sunset's direction, but didn't fully look at her, as she was eating her lunch. "Yes?"

Sunset gestured Twilight's wrist. "How's your wrist?" she asked.

This time twilight completely turned to face Sunset. Twilight at Sunset, then her wrist. She lifted it up and turned it a couple of times while looked at Sunset, the cast turning along with Twilight's wrist. "Just fine." she said while smiling.

Sunset nodded. "How long until you can get the cast off?"

Twilight looked to her wrist, then back to Sunset. "Another week or two I think."

Sunset nodded again, looking away from Twilight.

Twilight smiled. "Thanks for asking."

Sunset just nodded, without making eye contact.

After a moment of silence, Twilight looked Sunset in the eye. "Sunset, I know you still feel bad about my wrist."

Sunset frowned and sighed. "I just...wish I could have stopped it."

Twilight arched an eyebrow. "But you did stop it. You did. Nothing has happened all week. It's over now."

Sunset just sighed and closed her eyes.

Twilight continued. "I've forgiven you. Now do me a great favor...and forgive yourself."

After a second, Sunset opened her eyes and looked at Twilight. "I'll try." she said quietly.

Twilight smiled for a second before spreading her arms apart. "Come here."

Sunset arched an eyebrow. "What?"

Twilight gestured again. "Come here, I think you need a hug."

Sunset tried to wave nonchalantly. "No I'm fine. I don't need a hug."

But Twilight wasn't have an of it. "Come on, yes you do." she said as she began to lean forward.

Sunset shook her head. "No really, I'm fi-oh okay." she said as Twilight wrapped her arms around Sunset's torso.

Sunset hesitated a moment before returning the gesture, smiling as it made her feel a little bit better.

Twilight took her arms back just as a familiar energetic voice sang out. "Come on! I have someone I want to introduce you to."

Then another voice. "Um...okay? Just stop pushing! I can walk!"

Both girls looked in the direction of the voices. Sunset's eyes lit up as she saw a Pinkie Pie lightly pushing Velvet Breeze over to their table.

Sunset got up from her seat and prepared for the introduction. She had only a few seconds before Velvet was standing in front of her, looking quite confused.

Pinkie walked out from behind Velvet and went between her and Sunset. "Velvet, this is my friend Sunset Shimmer." she said.

Sunset smiled and said, "Hello." while shaking velvet's hand, velvet doing the same.

The awkward silence that followed was interrupted by Pinkie looking to Sunset and asking, "Aren't you gonna say something Sunset? You said you wanted to get to know Velvet."

Velvet arched an eyebrow at this. "Oh?" she asked.

Sunset blushed and scratched her neck. "Yeah." she said.

Velvet nodded before looking to the clock on the wall nearby. "Well, it's only twelve thirty, so yeah, we can talk."

Velvet turned and grabbed a chair from a nearby table and pulled it up. Before sitting at an odd angle to the table Sunset and her friends were sitting at. Sunset sat down as well.

Sunset clapped her hands and said, "Well, before anything else can be done, I think further introduction is in order."

She gesture towards Pinkie Pie. "You've already met Pinkie Pie." she said.

Pinkie jumped and waved, while saying, "Hello!" loudly.

Sunset gesture towards the rest of her friends. "These are the rest of my friends. This is Twilight, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy." she said, each of them giving their own greeting as their name was called.

"Hi."

"Howdy."

"Hello darling."

"What's up?"

"Um..hi."

Velvet smiled. "It's nice to meet all of you." she turned to Sunset. "So, shall we start this?"

Sunset nodded. "Of course. First of all, how has your time been at school so far?" she asked.

Velvet thought for a moment. "Umm...well, I don't think I've been here long enough to formulate an opinion, but so far everything has been going fairly well. Especially compared to my last school." she answered.

'Be careful what you say Velvet.' Velvet's thoughts rang out in her mind. She thought for a moment and mentally sighed when she remembered that her school profile indicated that she came from a bad school in Trottingham.

The voice of the one named Rarity snapped Velvet out of her thoughts. "Well, that's wonderful to hear darling, but if you don't mind me asking, what do you mean by 'compared to your other school'? Rarity asked, sounding concerned.

'Just stick to your profile and you'll be fine.' Velvet mentally reassured herself before answering, "My old school, Trottingham High, was corrupted. The teacher their were--" Velvet lifted up a hand. "Sorry for the language--assholes. They would often beat the students even though corporal punishment was banned."

Everybody at the table gasped upon hearing this. Sunset covered her mouth with a hand, concern raging in her face.

Velvet nodded and continued to explain. "The worse thing about it was that it was kept a complete secret. The school principal was part of a gang, and he paid the cops to ignore the reports of beatings at the school."

When she heard this, Sunset's face began to go from concerned to angry.

Velvet took note of Sunset's facial expression and continued to explain her 'past'. "I told my parents of course, but they didn't believe me, saying that 'teachers would never do that' and other stuff. That changed when I came home with a black eye and bloody nose. My parents immediately pulled me from school and filed a police report, though I strongly suspect the report will be ignored like everything else. They then signed me up to go to this school."

Everyone was to near tears when Velvet finished her story. Even the normally joyous Pinkie Pie's eyes were watering slightly. Sunset's face still had an angry expression, but it had lessened slightly.

Sunset looked to Velvet and said with a determined voice, "Well, you don't have to worry about that anymore. I promise that you won't be harmed in this school, ever."

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement.

"Yeah. No one here gets theirs asses whooped. Unless it's by me, in soccer, football, dodgeball-" Rainbow Dash said, but didn't get to finish as Applejack cut her off.

"Alright, she gets it, your good at sports." AJ said with a roll of her eyes and a frown, before taking a bite of her lunch.

Velvet giggled at the friendly banter.

Upon hearing Rarity cough, Velvet her head to face the purple haired girl.

"Umm darling?" Rarity asked.

"Yes?" Velvet replied.

"I don't wish to be rude but," Rarity began, eyeing Velvet's clothes with a less then impressed look, "what the absolute hell, are you wearing? It looks so..." Rarity made a gross face. "...bland."

Velvet shrugged her shoulders, showing that she took no offence from the comment, much to rarity's relief. "I don't know. I never cared much for fashion beyond the occasional meme on a t-shirt. Not that I don't hate fashion per say, I've just never felt the need for it." Velvet said simply.

It wasn't a complete lie. When she joined the Assassins, she was taught to be invisible. The second tenant was "hide in plain sight" after all, so flashy clothing wasn't really the best choice. An Assassin could still wear flashy clothes, but the attention it sometimes drew, made doing things a little more difficult. So it wasn't a rule per say, more of a logical choice for most Assassins.

Rarity cocked her head curiously. "Well darling if you don't hate it, then perhaps you wouldn't mind trying some new? I'm an aspiring seamstress and am always looking for someone to try my wears." she offered.

Before Velvet could answer, the girl with light purple skin and glasses spoke up. "I can vouch for that." she said. "I never cared much for fashion either until she made a great outfit. It completely spoke to everything about me. I still wear it on occasion."

Velvet nodded in a somewhat impressed fashion. "Hmm." she pointed to the purple girl. "Twilight right?"

Twilight nodded in confirmation. "Mhmm."

Velvet pointed to the white girl. "And Rarity. Correct?"

Rarity smiled. "Yes darling."

Velvet nodded. "Well Rarity, from what Twilight has told me, you sound like quite the talented girl." she commented, earning a somewhat smug smile from Rarity. "Perhaps I will let you make something for me. But later. I want to get more comfortable with the school first."

Rarity nodded in understanding. "Of course dear. I completely understand. You come whenever you're ready."

Velvet smiled. "Thank you."

Rarity smiled. "You're welcome dear. I think I would also like to know you better before starting to make clothes for you. Knowing your client's personality is crucial to making stylized clothing for them you know." she said matter-of-factually.

Velvet looked at Rarity for a second and noticed a necklace. She looked around at the rest of the girls at the table and saw they were all wearing similar necklaces.

Velvet pointed to the one Rarity was wearing. "That's a neat looking necklace." she commented.

Rarity looked down at her pendant. "Oh. Why thank you Velvet."

"Where'd you get them?" Velvet asked, genuinely curious.

Rarity suddenly looked nervous. "Oh! Umm...these. Yes...umm...-"

"Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy made them." Sunset cut Rarity off, gaining Velvet's attention.

"Really?" Velvet said in slight disbelief. 'That's quite the talent.' she thought to herself.

Sunset nodded. "Uhuh." she nudged Pinkie's arm. "Right Pinkie?"

Pinkie, who was staring off into space blinked. "Huh? Oh yeah, we made them." she said before looking to Fluttershy. "Right Flutters?"

Fluttershy looked up. "Umm...yes." she said quietly.

"We made them to signify the friendship we all have with each other." Sunset said.

"Kind of like a friendship bracelet or something." Velvet said.

Sunset nodded. "Yeah, but with necklaces." she confirmed.

The ringing of the bell signaled the end of lunch, and the end of the conversation.

Velvet looked at the clock with a hint of surprise. "Hmm. I guess time really does fly when you're doing stuff." she said as everyone began picking up their garbage.

Sunset smiled. "That it does." she said.

Velvet looked to Sunset. "We'll have to continue this conversation tomorrow."

Sunset nodded. "Yes we do."

Once at the garbage bin Sunset looked to Velvet. "Will I see you in chemistry class today?" she asked

Velvet nodded. "Mhmm."

Sunset nodded back. "Alright. See you there." she said as she threw her garbage in the nearby garbage bin.

"See you." Velvet replied.

And with that, the rainbooms and Velvet went their separate ways the their respective classes.

Along the way the chemistry class, Velvet thought about that...rather awkward introduction. "Well, this makes things a little easier." she said to herself. "Still...I don't know how to question about the Peice of Eden without seeming suspicious."

Velvet adjusted her bag and walked a little faster. "This may be harder than I thought." she said as she made her way to next class.

"So, does Velvet look like the kind of student that would take over Equestria." asked Applejack with a smirk as sipped on a apple and banana smoothie in Sugarcube Corner, along with the rest of the rainbooms.

Sunset looked at Applejack. "No. I guess not."

Applejack smirked a little wider. "See? Not everyone new that comes to this school is some magical creature that's gonna take over."

"She seems really nice." Fluttershy squeaked.

"Indeed." Rarity agreed. "Such a shame she came from such a terrible school." she shook her head. "Connections with the mob...unspeakable." she mumbled.

"Definitely." Twilight agreed as well. "We should make sure that she is accepted here, and ensure she never comes home with a black eye, or bloody nose." she said, everyone nodding in agreement.

Pinkie Pie took this time to speak up. "Velvet seem really interested in our magical pendants!" she said.

Sunset nodded before looking around. "Hey, girls?" she said, everyone looking at her. "I think it's best if we keep our magic a secret from Velvet for now."

Applejack arched an eyebrow. "Why?" she asked.

Sunset shrugged her shoulders. "Just until she gets settled. I know magic isn't common in this world, so I figured if we told her now, she'd either get scared and run, or she wouldn't believe us."

Applejack shrugged her shoulders. "Ah suppose. How long do ya reckon we keep our magic a secret for?"

"A good month or two." Sunset answered. "Or until we accidentally reveal our magic."

"Now that I think about it, it would be a really awkward conversation." Fluttershy commented.

Applejack nodded. "Alright then. It's settled. We'll wait a month or two to reveal our magic." she said as she got up out of her seat.

Everyone got up and went to the front doors. "See ya'll later?" asked Applejack.

"Mhmm." Sunset answered.

Then Rarity. "Yes darling."

Then Rainbow Dash. "Yeah."

Then Twilight. "Uhuh."

Then Pinkie Pie. "Yeah!"

Then Fluttershy. "Yes."

Applejack dipped her hat. "Alright. Bye." she said before she and the rest of the rainbooms went there separate ways.

Author's Note

Hello everypony! That's all for chapter 8! I know it took a long time for a short chapter, but you see, I have autism, so cooking up chapters sometimes takes longer than the average person. This also explains why the conversation between Velvet and the Rainbooms is a little awkward. I'm not quite sure how each of the Rainbooms speak.

I can edit it for sure, but I'm not quite sure how to make it better. If any of you readers have any suggestions or advice you can give me, make sure you write them down in the comments below. Also, be sure to leave a like if you enjoyed the chapter. It really helps to my confidence to know that people like my work because it took a lot out of me to find the courage to write on fimfiction.

Anyways......That's all I have to say for now! See you guys...next chapter. BYEEE!!!

By the way, P.O.E stands for Piece Of Eden; and P.O.E.D stands for Piece Of Eden Detector.
Just so no one gets confused.