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A Birthday Party to Cure a Birthday
Chapter 2: 6 Years Ago, 22 Hours before the Incident
Six years ago Fillydelphia High School Fillydelphia
A lot of ponies would say that senior high school is one of the best moments in one's life, and that's actually true. But for a select few, it can also be the worst moments in their life at the same time. For now, Blue Streak still thinks positively. He may only have a couple of friends, but their bond is very tight together, and they never fail to cheer or help each other.
Blue Streak is often seen with Clear Flask, a white female earth pony that's known to be smart and still rather outgoing. She's the pony that everypony else run to everytime there would be a test. Although she's always happy to help, sometimes she got rather annoyed by the fact that almost the entire class wants her to teach them. A hang out with her close friends always washes that negative thought, though.
The other member of the group is Ace Baret, a green male pegasus. Known to be rather rowdy, probably because he's a son of a soldier, he has a rather odd relation with the group. Sometimes he's the source of internal conflicts because of his jokes and a bit of his sexist attitude (Which often annoys Clear Flask), but it's never serious enough to permanently severe their bond.
The three had been classmates for a few years. But alas, as they're entering high school, they got separated in different classes. Worse, Blue Streak noted that some of his classmates are ponies that he didn't really want to bother with, something his friends were also concerned with. Bullies are known to still exist in high school, after all. And, although Blue Streak is not exactly a punching bag, he's still prone to some verbal abuse.
Blue Streak had endured his class for around four months now. He had took note of his classmates behavior towards him. There are some who deliberately target him, but most of them just gives in to peer pressure, like laughing at some of the 'jokes' given to him. Those kinds of ponies he can tolerate, because they're not really evil, and can be nice to him at times, but...
There's a test today, and it's a classic scene in a high school. Some students just don't give a crap, some just talk about it with their friends, some just realized this very second that there's a test, and so on. A few ponies study hard for the test, though, and Blue Streak is one of them. He's not exactly a genius, but studying is what you should do in school. Sitting on his desk with a book, Blue Streak scratches his already heated head. The course with Clear Flask helps, but not enough. There's just so many things to remember.....
"Hey, Blue bangs, what are you doing?"
Blue Streak mentally exhales. That voice only belongs to Lily Dew, the so-called head honcho of the class. Most of the class follows her lead, but to the blue pegasus, she's a devil incarnate. There's literally no reason for her to mess with him, but she still does all the time anyway.
It doesn't help that beside that white mare, there's always a red female unicorn accompanying her. Rose Thorn is just as annoying, and Blue Streak always hated spoiled, attention seeking ponies. She's the kind of pony that will go into tantrum if she doesn't get what she wants. Blue Streak simply glares at them briefly, before pretending that they don't exist.
"My, aren't you such a try hard at life? No wonder you got so few friends." Lily smirked. Well, it's better then having the entire class as your sheep instead of real friends.
"Yeah, why try so hard? Studying doesn't help!" Rose added. Well, that's because you kept failing tests left, right, and center. Not gonna happen to me, I'm going to keep studying.
"...Say, are you listening to us?" Nope. "Maybe we need to do something to grab his attention, Rose!"
A red hoof covers most of the page Blue is reading. For once, Blue is rather thankful that he needs to read another book to study all the materials for the test. Completely ignoring the harassment, the pegasus opens the other book he needs to study from. But this time, green colored magic from Rose's horn took grab of it. Try as he might, he can't open the book. The standoff lasted a few more seconds before the book got flipped through the air from the force it's receiving. Out of impulse, Blue Streak stood up and looks the red unicorn in the eyes, hitting his own desk in the process.
"I mean, if you didn't pull that hard, that book would've been okay right now." Rose giggled, giving an obviously fake apologetic look.
"You're happy now? Will you go away now?" Blue Streak growled, trying his best to control himself from punching the mare right there and then.
"Maybe, maybe not. What if we don't want to go? What are you going to do, blue bangs? Hit a mare?" Lily taunted.
"...My parents told me not to, but you two know better that rules are made to be broken, right?" Blue countered, trying to sound threatening. But deep inside, he doesn't want this. He's a better pony then that. Heck, he never hit somepony before.
"You wouldn't, pee wee." Rose said with the most disgusting looking grin Blue had ever seen in somepony's face. "Mommy and daddy wouldn't be happy about that, right?"
"You're going to break your parent's rule? Oh, how could you!?" Lily dramatically gasped. "You're such a bad boy!"
...No, he really doesn't want to do that. Hitting somepony else, especially mares, goes against everything his parents taught him. Not to mention he'll probably get in trouble with the school. But if he had to, if he REALLY had to...
"I think everypony would have a field day with this! Blue Streak, is going to go against mommy and daddy's words! Rose, we should tell somepony about this!" Lily turned around and laughed, shooting one last mischievous look at Blue. Rose follows her away.
"Urgh..." Blue smacks his head on the desk. If there's anything he hated about bullying, he hates it even more if his parents are involved. He's the kind of pony that would do anything to make his parents happy for raising him with love, and he feels kind of guilty by the fact he haven't done anything to make them proud. No awards, not that good at sports, and never joining any kind of competition. Keeping his grades from failing is the least he can do for now, but he feels that's not enough.
It's a few days after the test, and the teacher had just returned the test papers with the grades shown on them. Blue Streak isn't that satisfied. A seventy seven mark is just enough to not get a fail, but he should be able to do better. It must be because of their intervention... Suddenly, a hoof across the shoulder made Blue froze briefly.
"He~y, Blue, how's yours?" A rather raspy voice called. Blue would know only Focus Sight talks like that. Because he had to undergo a surgery in the past, his voice would sometimes cut out randomly while he speaks. He's actually a nice pony, but often also gives in to peer pressure in bullying. It's more like he doesn't know that jokes can hurt people. Despite that, Blue still consider him as a friend, albeit a rather untrusted one...
"Eh, could've done better. You?" Blue asked. Focus chuckled, his test result shouldn't be that hard to guess. Instead, the black coated male pegasus took a peek at Blue's score.
"Who~a, you should teach me some~time." He said. "How'd you ~ be that good? You got Clear F~lask to teach you a~gain?"
"A bit." Blue answered.
"...Private ses~sion?" The blue pegasus stops his movements, and give Focus a look that clearly said 'Seriously?', causing the pegasus to laugh. Blue always finds it annoying that he's sometimes shipped with Clear Flask. Finding a marefriend is dead last in his priorities list, another thing that can be used against him by his classmates.
"He~y, don't take it too seriously. I~'m just kidding." Focus claimed.
"I know... Just not in the mood today, sorry." Blue said as he got up from his desk. It's recess time, and he would like to get something to eat. Plus, this is an opportunity to meet up with Clear and Ace, his best friends. There's no way he'll miss this out.
"Cheer up, B~lue. You look like that, and Topaz might ha~ve a go at you." Focus called out.
Oh dear Celestia, not another one. Topaz Solid is yet another bully he rather not meet. The thing is, he and his gang acts as if Blue is several years younger then them, something that the pegasus never appreciates. Like the others, they wouldn't stop doing it either, although they don't always harass him at every corner like Lily did. What's worse, Topaz is leading three other ponies that's as bad as him when dealing with Blue. One of them is--
"Oof!"
"Hey, watch it!"
--Rocket Flare. Known to express his emotions through physical means, this red male pegasus had been into trouble a few times in the past, one of them is considered to be serious. Why he's not expelled yet is beyond Blue's understanding. Blue ignores him and kept walking, but his nemesis snuck a rather hard shove to his head, almost causing Blue to step out of balance. For a moment, Blue fears this might turn to something serious, but he's kind of relived that Rocket decided to leave him alone for now. He better leave the class before he changes his mind.
The school canteen is a rather peaceful retreat for Blue, considering everypony that may target him usually decided to mind their own businesses instead. Plus, he got Clear Flask and Ace Baret with him right now. Their presence alone is enough to sooth him. Together on the same table, they do some small talk while having a meal.
"...I swear, that question didn't come from the book!" Ace complained, talking about the test before.
"It IS there, you know. Didn't I taught you that before?" Clear Flask countered, taking a sip from a glass of orange juice. "Do you remember it, Blue?"
"I think so... Requires us to improvise a bit, though." Blue said. "I don't get it right, but got points for trying."
"Oh, whatever. What's done is done." Ace shrugged. "So, Blue, how's your day?"
"Could be better." The pegasus took a bite from his sandwich, subtly saying he doesn't want to talk about it.
"...Hey, Blue? What do you say if we stop at my house after school for some R&R?" Clear Flask offered. "Some of our friends already asked me about it."
"Oh?" Blue's attention is immediately caught. "What is this? A rare student's night out?". Blue is one of those ponies that rarely visited somepony else's home, even his best friends, but he always wanted to do so. The idea of spending time outside school with his friends just to have fun is always welcome.
"It's a suggestion by our friends." Clear giggled. "We're thinking of playing board games and such, and there will be at least six of us. I bet it's gonna be fun!"
"Oh! And I can fetch my playing cards real quick!" Ace added. "I can't wait, actually!"
"Now you're getting me hyped up." Blue smiled. This is a rare chance, after all. School had kept everyone busy that they never had a chance to hang out with that many ponies at the same time. "I'll be looking forward to it!"
"We all are, Blue." Ace nodded, taking a bite from his own sandwich. The band of three friends soon finish their food and prepares to return to class for the last sessions. In the end, Blue was smiling until the end of the day, and it'll only get better after school.
Author's Note
Edit 15/12/2017: Fixed some typos.
Also, is it bad that I had a blast writing Lily Dew and Rose Thorn?
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A Birthday Party to Cure a Birthday
Chapter 3: Game Evening, 18 Hours before the Incident
Clear Flask's house is as 'strategically' placed as it can get. It's not far from school, and it rests just at an intersection that leads to places that most students live. Because of this, it becomes a favorite spot for his friends to chill together, or a place to learn together. Her parents are also known to be nice, only adding to the hospitality.
Right now, Blue, Ace, and Clear is having their best moments in life. They're accompanied by a unicorn called Note Books, also one of the smartest colts in school, but a bit difficult to socialize with. Besides him, there's Camp Trail and Rocky Path, a pair of male earth pony cousins that has been Blue's friend since childhood. Currently, the ponies are playing a card game of Uno, but Ace decided that the rules should be modified. Instead of using points, the first player to run out of cards will win everything, and he also decided to use two decks instead of one. It sounds like a good idea at first to keep the game going longer, but it's turning up to be too long.
So far, Ace is close to winning, followed by Rocky. But this only causes everypony to gang up on him, throwing skips, draw two cards, or reverse to halt his progress if they can. Until, finally, a red eight made it pass Ace's hand.
"Uno!" He called out loud, just in time before somepony caught him.
"Nopony let him win!" Camp Trail looks at Blue, the pony that goes before Ace. "You got any draw two, Blue?"
"Umm..." Blue looks at his hooves. There's at least ten cards, but none of them can stop Ace. He didn't say anything, however. Meanwhile, Note Books sent out a red two.
"Crud..." Clear Flask reaches for the deck, as she didn't have any cards she can play. She draws three cards, until she stumbles on a wild card. "Yellow." She says.
"Oh, thank Celestia." Camp Trail throws out a yellow nine. Suddenly, his cousin who's next to him exclaimed.
"YES! Finally!" He throws down a card in excitement. "UNO!"
"...Wait, that's a six, Rocky." Note Books said, causing Rocky to freeze. What he played was a green six.
"A... What? Isn't that a yellow six he just threw!?" Rocky took the card he and Camp threw in disbelief.
"No! That's a yellow nine, you dumb!" Ace laughed, and so did everyone, even Rocky.
"Ha! Now we know that he got a green six! Don't give him a chance!" Camp Trail told everypony. Rocky went silent as he returns his card back to his hooves. But then, he chuckled.
"You all think I'm done?" Rocky grabs his other card and slams it to the pile. "BAM! A yellow five! It doesn't matter! I'm still going to win!" Everypony looked in surprise and amazement that Rocky can still play a card even after the mistaken identity of six and nine. However, Clear Flask suddenly laughed out loud.
"What's so funny?" Rocky asked the mare. In return, Clear uttered a word. One simple word that filled Rocky with dread and horror.
"Uno."
A burst of laughter erupted from the group like a violent chemical reaction. In his excitement, Rocky had forgotten to say 'Uno' a second time as he played his other card. Now he has to draw two cards as a punishment.
"You're such a goddamn dork!" Camp rolled onto his back, laughing.
"He looked so cool playing that card too!" Blue added. "That's just amazing!"
Rocky did an over dramatic slump to the floor, but one can hear him laughing as well. Although, there's no mistaking the little pain coming from his voice.
"This... game. I swear I'll never play this again." Rocky chuckled. "Blue, hurry up."
"Oh, yeah." Blue looked at the yellow five card on top on the pile, but he just realized that he doesn't have a valid normal card to play. His only option is to play his wild card. Uneasily looking at Ace and the green colt's one remaining card next to him. As soon as he drops his card, the entire group focuses on him.
"Don't mess this up, Blue! Choose a color that he don't have!" Camp pointed to Ace.
"I don't know his last card!" Blue argued. The four colors are swirling in his head. If he picked the wrong one, Ace would win.
"Come on, Blue. Choose one!" Clear Flask pressed.
"Umm... Uhh... Red!" Blue blurted out, and the group went silent. All eyes are on Ace, who, worryingly, smiled.
"Y... Don't tell me..." Rocky waited with bated breath as Ace slowly flipped his card to the pile.
A red Skip.
"THANK YOU, buddy! You saved me from this deadlock!" Ace hugged Blue, causing everypony to laugh again.
"Hey, it's YOUR idea to keep reshuffling the deck! We ended up spending twenty minutes for one game!" Clear reminded the pegasus.
"Blue literally have a seventy five percent chance of not choosing the right color too." Note Books noted. "But he fails anyway."
"My luck sucks, that must be it." Blue drops the cards on his hooves to the floor. "Anyway... Who's up for something else other then this?"
There was no competition.
The evening felt like a breeze when you're having fun. The group of six friends played a lot of board games together, including Battleships, Monopoly, and Ludo. Blue still remembers all the best moments with his friends as he's walking towards the door, like how Camp Trail put all his ships in one corner of the board (and lost because of it), how Ace stepped on the "Go to jail' square four times in a row, or how Rocky Roads literally rolls on the floor in happiness when he finally got a six and able to move a piece out. Unfortunately, all good times must come to an end. The sun is nearing the horizon, and everypony have to go home. The group is gathering one last time just outside Clear Flask's front door.
"That was a real blast! Thanks for inviting me." Blue grinned.
"We should do this again sometimes." Rocky Path noted.
"Definitely." Clear Flask smiled. "Take care everypony, see you tomorrow!"
With one last wave of goodbye, everypony went their way as Clear Flask returns into her house. Ace and Note Books went their seperate ways, while Blue, Camp, and Rocky went down the same road together. They had to follow the same path home.
"So Blue, how's school today?" Rocky asked. "Did anything happen?"
Blue's head went to replay most of the events that happened today at school in a flash. There's nothing worth mentioning it seems other then the test results. Unless Rocky is actually asking about...
"...Are you asking about what I think you're asking?" Blue showed a rather serious expression to confirm his suspicion.
"....I mean, if it's okay with you." Rocky said. That confirms it. Rocky is asking about Blue's well being, whether or not he's bullied today. Rocky and Camp is probably the most protective of Blue compared to the rest of his friends. Since they're cousins, they almost always appear together, making their presence a bit of a 'threat' to the bullies.
"No, nothing serious happened today, really." Blue replied.
"Well, just letting you know that if you need us, we'll be there for you, ya hear?" Camp Trail said.
What do they exactly mean by that? Blue knows that these cousins had a history of violence long ago against bullies. He is rather torn, would he let these two ponies protect him physically? He would pay a million bits to watch someone like Lily Dew got her mane ripped off, but on the other hand, he doubts resorting to violence will accomplish anything other then guilt.
"I hope you don't mean... physically." Blue blurted out, as he noticed an intersection up ahead. He must separate with Rocky and Camp soon.
"No no, knowing you, that'll be our last resort." Rocky said. "We don't want to get into trouble too, you know."
"Well, there's the stealthy way to do it, but we're too clumsy and lazy to do that." Camp laughed. Blue chuckled a bit.
"Remember Blue, we all got your back. Keep your head high." Rocky said, just as they reached the intersection.
Bidding each other goodbye, Rocky and Camp turned right down the road, while Blue continued onward. Knowing that there are ponies still willing to support him feels nice. Being bullied sometimes made you feel that the world is against you, but Rocky and Camp reminded him that he still have his friends, and they're all good ponies.
Blue arrived at home rather late, but he did ask permission to his mother before, and she was okay with it. Currently, they're the only two in the house, with Blue's father still at work, usually until the sun has set. Blue's mother notices that her son had just arrived home, since he would have to walk through the kitchen where she is right now.
"Hey, Blue. How was it?" The mare asked. Blue walks into the kitchen to grab something quick to eat.
"It was really great." He smiled, grabbing a carrot and taking a bite.
"By the way, did you get the test results today?" Blue stopped mid movement as soon as his mother asked. A bit of uneasiness stalks in. He didn't fail, but he still felt he could do better in that test. In the end, Blue decided to get his test paper from his saddlebags and shows it to his mother.
"...I tried my best." Blue hung his head low. He really hates bringing any kind of bad news to his parents, no matter how minor the bad part is.
"Now, seventy seven isn't a fail, is it? I think that's all it matters." The pegasus's mother said, returning the paper to her son.
"I should be able to do better... It's been a while since I got good marks in a test. I want to get at least eighty five, but..."
"Don't beat yourself up like that, Blue." His mother said. "You will do better next time. You will get that good mark you want if you try, because I know my son is not a quitter."
A quick rub on the mane from his mother already comforts Blue. Their mother and son relationship is very close ever since Blue is just a kid. Blue nodded lightly, and a small smile curled up on his lips.
"...You're right, mom." Blue finishes his carrot with one last bite. "I... got to do something real quick in my room before dinner, is it okay?"
"Don't take too long. You know you don't like cold soup." His mother reminded.
Well, that's true. Carrying his saddlebags, Blue zips past the kitchen towards the small corridor that leads into his room. He need to do some book managing for school tomorrow. He opens the door and stepped into his small room, which only have a rather big desk and bed. Emptying the contents of his saddlebags onto his desk, Blue consulted his school's time table pasted on the nearby wall and puts everything needed for the next day, plus some extra things for precaution. Sometimes, the pegasus prides on his future planning capabilities.
Suddenly, a random thought streaks past his mind. It's something really, completely random, but it caught his attention. Is he always looking forward for a day at school? School isn't really a save place for him, not with the likes of Lily and Rose walking around. At the same time, school gives him the chance to meet Clear and Ace, perhaps the next two most important ponies in his life next to his parents. It's such a complicated thought that Blue shook his head to dispel it.
But he had a feeling that something different will happen tomorrow, especially since it's a special day for him...
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A Birthday Party to Cure a Birthday
Chapter 4: The Morning, and Final Seconds before the Incident
A ray of sunlight fell on Blue's face, prompting him to get up from his slumber. He rubs his eyes and checked his alarm clock. It's six past twelve, three minutes before he's supposed to wake up.
"Beaten again, alarm." He chuckled to himself. Blue is a very on time pony, and he almost never overslept, no matter how tired he is. Almost all the time he wakes up before his alarm goes off, but he still keeps it by his side just in case. Turning the alarm clock off, he got off his bed to do his morning preparations for school.
As he exited his room, Blue ran onto his father who's passing by. The older stallion smiled and gives Blue a quick hug with one hoof around the shoulder.
"Happy birthday, son." He said.
"Eheheh, is this hug my birthday present?" Blue asked cheekily. He knows he's not a kid anymore, but for once, he'd like a real birthday present. His father simply chuckled at his rhetorical question.
"I thought you don't really care about your birthday, Blue?" Blue heard his mother talking from the kitchen. As Blue made his way towards the kitchen to get some breakfast, he can see his mother smiling to him.
"Unless I got an amazing gift or something." The pegasus laughed. Although he wanted it, he never expected to get any 'amazing' gifts for his birthday. It's just a wishful thought for him instead of a tradition to be showered by gifts during a birthday.
"You're such an honest pony." His mother laughed along. "Maybe your friends will buy you something."
"Or, you know, hanging out with friends isn't a bad idea for a birthday celebration." His father added.
"I'll see what they have in store for me." Blue smiled. It's very unlikely, but maybe his close friends do have something planned for him. He does have that kind of feeling last night...
Blue arrived at school slightly a bit late then usual, although it's not much, considering he's never late. It's quiet at school early in the morning as he enters his class, but it'll soon change.
Amongst the few students that already arrive early, for some reason, Lily Dew and Topaz Solid are already there. Usually, they, along with most students, don't arrive this early in the morning. Then, he realized that they're wearing orange scarfs. Not just them, the other classmates wears them too.
"Look who forgot to wear his class scarf, you darn kid." Topaz said. Damn, he forgot to bring it with him today! There's going to be a class photo shoot, and everypony agrees to wear their 'Class accessories' for the picture. In his class's case, Blue's classmates made orange matching scarfs to wear.
"Yeah, he doesn't listen to me, what are the odds he'll listen to anypony else?" Lily added.
Blue wordlessly made his way to his chair and sat. He screwed up by not bringing that scarf. It's still his fault for forgetting, but no doubt that plenty of salt will be poured into that wound. If this is what he gets dead in the morning, there's no telling what kind of torture he'll have to endure at the rest of the day.
As the first school bell is about to start, it became apparent that it seems Blue is the only one who forgot about the scarf. Note Books, who's also his classmate, noticed this and sat next to him.
"Hey, where's your scarf?" He asked.
"...I forgot about it." Blue admitted. "You'd think they'll buy it if I said that somepony borrowed it?"
"I don't think it'll save you..." Note Books said. He knows that Blue is a target for bullying, and he can tell that the pegasus is scared. As they were talking, they noticed somepony walking towards them. It's Ball Hoops, one of Topaz's cronies, and an annoyed looking Rocket Flare. Blue braces himself internally, things will get pretty ugly.
"Topaz told me you had the nerve to not wear your scarf, Blue." The red pegasus growled. Blue stayed silent, while Note Books uneasily looks at him.
"Hey, you better have a good explanation!" Rocket shoved his face up towards Blue, forcing eye contact.
"I... lent it to my cousin, he needed it." Blue lied, but that's the best story he can conjure.
"...You idiot! Why'd you do that? We told you since two days ago! Bring. The darn. Scarf!" Rocket tapped his hoof rather harshly at Blue's head after every word.
"Hey, Rocket. Calm down, you'll hurt him." Ball Hoops grabbed Rocket's shoulder gently. Although it seems that he's concerned, Blue can see the smile at the edge of his lips. He's just laughing along inside.
"Hmph, unless you manage to bring it before the photo shoot, You. Are. Dead. You got me?" Rocket taps his hoof on Blue's shoulder before going away with Ball Hoops. Blue shakily exhales as the ordeal is over, for now. Then, he felt Note Books's hoof on his own, he just remembered there's somepony sitting next to him.
"...Blue. You... must be strong." He said sternly. It's a rather unexpected reaction for Blue, because Note usually left him alone upon touching the subject of bullying. Maybe even Note is nearing his breaking point?
"I will... I must, or die trying." Blue said. He thinks that this year, his birthday will not be worth remembering.
It's the last school session before the recess, maths. The session would end in around ten minutes, but the teacher prepares four math problems on the board, and he also prepares four chalks to use.
"Before this session ends, I want four ponies to solve these problems." The stallion requested. "You, red mare, get on the first problem."
The red mare in question is Rose Thorn, who in a completely carefree way walks forwards and stared at the chalk writings. Meanwhile, the teacher pointed the pony for the third problem.
"How about you, Blue? Care to solve the second problem?"
Blue shrugged internally. It's never a choice for students to decline to solve a problem. Blue walked up to the board and studied the mathematical problem... Wait what?
"Focus Sight, you better be able to do the third problem."
What... is this? Despite Blue's memories, he's certain he hasn't been taught how to solve this kind of problem. He looked left and right to see the other problems, and he's sure he can do them IF he's not assigned to do this particular question! He'll just have to try something out...
"And... the last one. Royal Suit, care to step up?"
Blue turned around to see the pony that got the final question. Royal Suit is one of Topaz's friends, and compared to them, he's not stupid when it comes to lessons. Still, he's the least worst pony in the group, more likely targeting him because of peer pressure. He can hear Topaz and his friends giggling when one of them is choosen, very typical of them to treat a school lesson like a joke.
"H~ey, Blue. Ca~re to help me out?" Focus Sight asked. It is not forbidden to help out your friends when you're up front, but it may make you look more dumb in the teacher's eyes. At least Blue won't be the one getting the stare if he helped.
"Okay, but hold on... I'm trying to figure out mine." The pegasus informed.
Blue reanalyzed his problem once again... and still draws blank. Crap, he can only do one part of the solution, which he already did, but had no idea how to continue. Now he looked like a dumb horse staring at something he can't comprehend.
"Blue, h~elp me." Focus asked again. Blue looked at the problem Focus was assigned to. Oh, for crying out loud, he can't do that? Besides, Blue needs time to think, maybe something will help him while he's helping Focus.
"J-Just count the root equation, then... divide that by fourteen--"
"Wait, h~ow do you count this?"
"Wh... The root of-- Hey!"
A rubbing sound catches Blue's attention, and noticed an eraser covered in a red magic grip is making a mess of his writings. Rose is giggling like a foal before half ran towards her seat. Blue's not even sure if she'd finished her problem or did it correctly. Meanwhile, Royal Suit had already finished his, and Focus is thankfully able to do the rest of the solution himself. Now, he's the only one that haven't started thanks to that darn mare. He better finish his problem, and fast!
"You're welcome!" He can hear Rose giggling again from her seat. Dear Celestia if Blue had a spear right now...
Once again, Blue analyzed the math problem he'd given. All his knowledge summoned into his head, and... still nothing. This is, legit, something he haven't been taught before. Like last time, he can only do the first part of the solution, before stopping. He felt like a fool, even Focus had finished his problem. Blue started to sweat, there's not much time left...
*Riiiiiiiing*
Usually, the bell for recess is a godsend for all the students. But just this once, it's a sign of horror for Blue. While the rest of the class seems happy to get a break from the school lessons, Blue realized that he had failed to finish a task in time. It doesn't help that his teacher is next to him right now, looking at his answer in an unimpressed way.
"...Points for getting the first step right. But honestly, I expected you to be able to solve it, Blue." The stallion commented, before walking out from the room. That hurt. Blue is a student that's very rarely got scolded in any way, and he would like to keep it that way. In this particular case, it felt unfair. He's positive that he haven't been taught how to solve the problem. Defeated, Blue sulked back to his desk. Oh well, perhaps getting to meet his friends will cheer him up.
But of coarse, Lily Dew has another plan in mind.
Like usual, she'd brought Rose with him, but this time, Topaz and his gang are here too.
"See? When we say you're a dumb horse, you deny it. What happens now?" Lily fired the first shot.
"It's even dumber to erase the completely wrong side of the board." Blue hissed, glaring at Rose.
"Oh! If you're so smart, why can't you finish the answer, hm?" Rose countered. Damn, why she's only smart at things like this?
"And, if you're so smart, you should've brought the class scarf." Ball Hoops added.
"Yeah, that's right. Or did you do it on purpose?" Topaz accused. The ponies around Blue seems to be more unfriendly then usual.
"I bet he did!" Lily shoves her face to Blue's. "So, you think you can get away trying to abandon us? You will never survive without us!"
At this time, Blue imagines himself to be alone, all alone. That's his wish, and he tried hard to ignore any disturbance from the world. But it's hard, and the mental straining to do that somehow hurts. Or, probably it hurts because of the words thrown at him... No, he must be strong.
"As a stallion, you should be responsible for your actions! Go get that scarf already!" Rose went into the mix. "Or, are you not a stallion?"
Make it stop. Blue buried his head in his hooves, jamming his eyes shut.
"He's just a kid, he doesn't understand something like that." Topaz said.
"This is probably a good time to say 'Kids nowdays', eh?" Royal Suit chuckled with his group.
Blue's eye twitched. This is pure torture. He honestly don't know how long he can survive...
"Kids... Maybe his parents didn't treat and raise him properly too." Rocket said.
Twitch
"Yeah, if I were his mother, I'll be ashamed to have a son this careless and unresposible!" Lily said.
Twitch
"Heck, you think his parents love him?" Topaz said.
TWITCH
"Ah, he's probably an accident when his mom is having her way with another stallion!" Rose said.
TWITCH
A sob
"That makes sense, I guess." Topaz taps Blue's head, very slightly lifting his face. "Is that true, kid?"
Blue cannot hold it in anymore. He doesn't care if everypony around him can see and hear him now. The blue pegasus sobbed and cried openly. So many things he wished would happen. He wished he can shrink and vanish to somewhere else. He wished he can stop time to burn down the entire classroom. He wished airtight earplugs would cover his ears right now. But it's all just a wish. Real life comes down at him hard because of these horrible, horrible ponies surrounding him. Curse them, curse them for eternity. If one more thing happen to him--
"Happy birthday, Blue!"
From his blurred vision, Blue can see something brown on his desk, a chocolate cake. Everypony around him suddenly looked friendly as they exclaimed. They... They're... giving him a... birthday surprise?
SNAP
Author's Note
Whoa, two chapters in one day?
Do you dare to guess what will happen next?
A Birthday Party to Cure a Birthday
"We know that we've been bothing you for a good while, so we thought we'd do something nice for once!" Lily said.
They know
"No, we're not that upset that you didn't brought your scarf. We do forget things from time to time." Topaz added.
Table
"We got this little cake for you, we used our money together. Isn't it nice?" Rose said.
Anger
"By the way, we did work together with the teacher to set up this surprise, so don't feel to bad." Ball Hoops
Growl
"We may call you a kid, but you're still our classmate, and that's all that matters." Topaz put a hoof on the pegasus's shoulders. "Right, Blue?"
Teeth
"Blue?"
Blur
Blue let out a primal sounding roar that echoed through the school's hall. He took hold of his desk and flipped it by force, forcing everypony back in surprise. Somehow, Rose managed to save the cake by carrying it on her hooves. Next, he grabbed his chair with both hooves and slams it as hard as he can to his fallen desk, almost hitting Topaz in the process. The earth pony in question shows a very rare expression of fear that Blue had never seen before, and at this state, he'd like to keep it that way.
"YOU ARE ALL ABSOLUTE MONSTERS!! GO TO TARTARUS AND BURN!!" Blue's voice once again echoed around the building. "YOU ALL KNOW!!"
The rest of his classmates looked around due to nervousness, confusion, and fear. Some 'meeker' ones decided to take a step back.
"What... do you mean?" Topaz dared to ask.
"You said... You've been bothering me for a while, and THAT IS FRICKING TRUE!! EVERYTHING YOU DID TO ME IS ON PURPOSE! YOU ALL WANTED TO HURT ME!!! " Blue screamed.
"B-But, we did this for you too! We even got this cake for you!" Rose slightly moves the small cake forward with a slightly shaky hoof.
"If you think... a cake can mend up everything you DID TO ME because I'm too nice or something, YOU'RE BUCKING INSANE! IT'S NOT WORTH AT ALL!! I DON'T WANT YOUR PITY!!" In his frenzy, Blur grabbed the cake his classmates
bought for him and throws it at Rose's face. The mare yelped in surprise as she lost balance and fell to her back, further surprising the class. "AND THAT IS FOR WHAT YOU DID DURING MATHS!"
By now, the ruckus had reached every corner of the school, and every student nearby started to gather outside the class by the window. Most of them watched with their mouths agape, never before they've seen anything like this, by Blue, no less. One of the spectators is Clear Flask. Her heart dropped when she learned what happened, and the mare ran off. She need to tell him about this!
"Blue, calm down!" Lily Dew stepped forward. "We... may hurt you, but we're showing you that we can be nice, too! Please, won't you--"
"SHUT UP, YOU SLUT!" A hoof to the nose sent Lily to the floor as well, the mare screamed and held her nose in pain. Topaz and his friends scrambled to help the fallen mare as they're the closest to her. "I'LL MAKE YOU WISH FOR A QUICK DEATH!! "
Blinded by rage, Blue lunged at Lily, but Topaz and his friends are in the way. He doesn't care that everypony tried to restrain him now. He struggled with everything he has, perhaps hitting somepony in the process, not that he cared. This horrible mare needs to feel his pain, the pain SHE had given to him, by tenfold if necessary.
Soon, the reality started to sink in for Blue. He's going absolutely berserk. He had physically struck at least two ponies, something he'd never done before. He would never do that under normal circumstances. His anger slowly turned into sadness, tears started to cloud his eyes again. He felt really guilty, but he felt good at the same time. The pegasus's conscious is battling to get back control, and it's winning slowly. But ironically, it only brings pain, much pain. His struggle slowed down, then stopped.
"This is what you all wanted, r-right? Watching me get angry and cry... This is what you all worked so hard for everyday, right?" Blue spat bitterly. "WELL!?"
"Blue!"
From the crowd, a pony emerges and grabbed Blue into a hug. The pegasus realized it's Ace, his friend. Ace wordlessly started to pull Blue away from the scene slowly, and soon, they left the classroom. Upon so, Blue suddenly bawled loudly, sadness and pain clearly shown as the pegasus wailed into his friend's shoulder. As the pain that he felt became too great, Blue slowed down until he almost stopped, but Ace picked him up onto his back and kept marching on, like a soldier carrying his injured partner out of the battlefield.
Blue doesn't remember the journey that much. His pain had dulled every sense in his body. He kept crying, that's for sure...
Blue sat on the sofa with his head hung low. He's in the student counseling office, waiting for the teacher in charge. He DID hurt two students and caused some damage, so maybe he deserved this. Ace had bought him to the teacher's office back then. Thankfully, almost all of the teachers have good relation with Blue, so they let him stay in the office to calm himself down.
Then the door opens, revealing a cream coated mare with her right forehoof missing. Blue rarely met Ms Heart Probe, or better known as 'Doctor', but he had heard things about her. She's not a full time teacher at Fillydelphia High School, but she's well loved for her kindness and ability to cope well with the students. She acts like the school nurse, and sometimes gives lessons about health. But right now, she's the student counselor.
"Blue Streak, yes?" The mare asked with a smile. Blue nodded. "How do you feel?"
"...Terrible." Blue quivered, almost letting a tear fell. The doctor walked on her three hooves and sat next to Blue, stroking his shoulder with her hoof. She did so wordlessly for several seconds, letting the pegasus calm himself down.
"Am I... in trouble, doctor?" Blue asked. He fear that something will happen to his future in this school. Perhaps he's not allowed to go to school for several days, or maybe even expelled.
"Well... I will say that the situation is quite serious. However, we decided to... let you go with a warning." The doctor spoke calmly. "Two of your friends told us that you've been subject to bullying for a long time, and they defended you fiercely."
That must be Clear Flask and Ace Baret. They really did that for him? Blue felt his heart swollen, he's going to give them both a big hug, while crying his heart out probably, if he gets out from here intact.
"The teachers also testified that you're normally a good student. It seems other ponies believe in you so much, that I wish I got the chance to know you earlier." The doctor started to check Blue's wings and back. "By the way, you are not hurt, are you?"
"Not... physically." Blue said. "B-But I feel... weak. My head is fuzzy..."
"Blue, you're not really ill. I believe it's because of your emotions." The doctor explained. "Take all the time to calm yourself down and rest here. We all want to make sure you're alright."
Blue nodded, but still hung his head low. Never before he'd been pushed to his limit like this. The event in his class kept replaying in his head, even when he doesn't want to think about it anymore. Everytime he remembers any moment of his outrage, his body shudders.
I'LL MAKE YOU WISH FOR A QUICK DEATH!!
A wave of dread hits the pegasus like a truck. Thinking back, he wonders what he could do if his classmates and Ace didn't put a stop to him. He remembers setting his sights at Lily, at her head, to be exact. He was going to hit her with everything he got. He was going to hit her where it hurts the most. He was going to... to...
Kill her.
Blue can actually feel himself going pale. Did he almost killed somepony? No, there's no way he would've done that. He knows himself, everypony should know themselves, right? But... he remembers it clearly, a voice in his head told him to hurt the mare that had hurt him many times before. Why? Why did he hear that voice? He's not that kind of pony.
...Is he?
Clamping his head with his hooves, Blue cried again. He don't know what to think anymore, because he cannot understand himself. He jammed his eyes shut, not only trying to stop the tears, but because he don't want to think about it at all. Perhaps the pain will distract his head. Suddenly, a soft, but firm push on his chest forces him to lean his back on the sofa. Ms Heart Probe pressed her hoof on the colt's chest, before doing some gentle, downwards rub a few times.
"Shh shh shh, you need to calm down, Blue." The Doctor offers a calm smile, but Blue can sense some kind of authority in her voice. "I'm here if you need help. But first, breath in and out softly..."
Blue did what Ms Heart Probe ordered. He inhales, then exhales. Inhale. Exhales. It felt kinda nice, actually. Focusing on his breathing suddenly takes his mind of the cursed endless replay in his head about the incident. He feel himself calm down enough to think with a clear head after a minute of controlling his breathing. Oh boy, no wonder why everyone loves this three hooved mare.
"D-Doctor... I... I feel that this is t-the worst day of my life." Blue stuttered. "And... today is supposed to be my birthday..."
"Oh? I'm unaware today is your birthday. Nopony mentioned it when they told me..." The doctor admitted. "I wish that your birthdays in the future will be better."
Blue sighed. No, it won't be better. His head just briefly replayed the moment her friend revealing their surprise after that brutal verbal beatdown he got. He confirms that the very mention of the word birthday causes him to unwillingly remember that incident. He don't want to remember that. He NEVER want to remember that again. But Blue wonders if it's realistically possible since a lot of ponies in his life knows about his birthday, and most of them are probably unaware how painful it is for him to be reminded of the incident.
"I don't know, doctor... I think I'm... scarred for life..." Blue confessed. It's a terrible thought to be terrified of the day that ponies would see as a happy day.
"No, Blue, you are not." The doctor shifts her position to sit upright beside the pegasus. "It's not a scar, but a wound. Wounds will heal, and I know you will be healed one way or another."
"...I doubt this will ever heal, doctor... This is... a scar, and scars don't heal, do they, doctor?" Blue asked. The mare beside him shifts her eyes down briefly and sighed. Then, her eyes returned to look at Blue's own eyes, but her expression seems to be more stoical.
"No, they don't. But I assure you Blue, you are not scarred. A scar is something that you cannot change in life, or as you said, scars cannot heal. What you've gone through cannot be compared to a scar because, well, you're seeing a prime example of a scar right here."
It took Blue a few seconds to understand what the mare meant until his eyes looked at the Doctor's hooves. That's right, she's missing one forehoof. Now he felt stupid to call his wound a scar. As painful as the bullying hurts him, at least he still have all his hooves intact.
"Oh my-- gosh, I didn't mean to... I-I'm sorry..." Blue hung his head low again, but the Doctor gently lifts his head with her hoof to meet him with a smile.
"Don't worry, I learned to not be upset about my hoof for a long time." The doctor chuckled. "The point is, even with a hoof missing, I can still live on happily. Why can't you do it after what you've went through? You can still change your view on birthdays. It's nothing compared to having one of your hoof disappear for life. Maybe in the future, somepony will bring you happiness during your birthday."
Blue silently nodded to himself. The slightest of smiles curled at the edges of his mouth. He can still imagine a birthday where he got the most amazing gifts, and all his best friends attending it. It's a one in a million chance, but it COULD happen. However, part of him also say that something like what happened today might happen again. He had no idea what the future of his birthdays hold, and it worries him a bit.
"Now, if you are ready, you should return to class. The sessions should've already started again." The doctor stood up from her seat, but Blue didn't follow her. He's not sure if he can face his classmates again after what he did. They'll hate him, or even got more merciless against him. Maybe those that previously didn't bully him suddenly decides to get in the act, thinking he's ungrateful for the birthday surprise. Blue sighed, there's a way out, but he doesn't like this one bit.
"...Actually, Doctor, I... I don't think I should return to my class." He stated, prompting a confused reaction from the Doctor. "I want to let things die down, and maybe some of my classmates want that too. I'm afraid things will get worse during this state of minds..."
"...What do you plan to do, then?" The doctor asked.
"Well..." Here it goes. "C-Can you help me g-get a permission to... to leave school early? Perhaps... I need a few nights to think to myself, and I think my classmates need that too..."
The pegasus waited nervously for a reply. This is a very out of place request, and he's not sure if the Doctor agrees to this. He just don't have the strength to return and meet his classmates again for today. The cream earth pony spent a minute pondering, before she talks again.
"One condition Blue, I got to tell this to your parents." The doctor said. Well, actually, that would make things easier for him. If he had to say it himself, he'll be more reluctant and difficult for him.
"Yes... They need to know. When are you going to tell them?" Blue asked.
"As soon as we leave school." The doctor smiled. Wait, is she...?
"Wait... You're going to... walk me home?" Blue's mouth hung open from his conclusion. "But, my home is pretty far..."
"Blue, the only thing I can't do with one forehoof is to do stand on both forehooves." The doctor laughed. "Wait here, once I got the letter of permission, we'll depart immediately."
As the Doctor left the room, Blue once again sighed. There is no easy way to get out from this. He started to think if his parents would understand him leaving school early if he told them his reason. He's pretty sure they will understand him, most likely they will take it that more seriously because the Doctor will be talking to them. Whatever happens from now on, it seems that everything will have a long term impact in his life.
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A Birthday Party to Cure a Birthday
Chapter 6: Fallout of the Incident, and return to the present day
In the aftermath of the day, Ms Heart Probe, the Doctor, walked Blue home herself after the pegasus got the permission to leave early. He's not sure on what base he's allowed to leave, though, and the Doctor didn't say anything about it. They both had a chat with Blue's mother about his condition, and what happened. Blue's mother is speechless, but is still supportive of her son. Although, through the rest of the day, there's this uneasy silence between their mother and son relation.
During the evening, Blue dared to talk to his mother first. It happened when the pegasus saw his mother sitting by the dinner table, looking sad.
"Mother..." Blue sat next to her. "Are... are you upset?"
The mare simply looked at her son for a moment, before looking back down, sighing.
"Not at you, Blue, not at you..." His mother tried to sound assuring. "I'm just wondering what did my son do to deserve to be bullied to this point?"
"Mom..." Blue pulled a chair next to his mother and they sat together. "Please don't be sad. I... I'm fine."
"If you are, you wouldn't be sent home early, would you?" Blue's mother countered. Okay, she got a point there.
"J-Just don't trouble yourself with it, mom. I don't want you to be sad." Blue pleaded.
"...I'm your mother, Blue. How can I turn a blind eye on my boy's trouble?" The mare locks her eye with her son's. Blue had trouble answering. He knows his own reason, but it sounds rather ridiculous if he says it to his mother. At least, that's what he thinks.
"B-Because, I've troubled you too much, mom..." Blue lowered his head, causing his mother to raise an eyebrow. "You always worked hard for me, and... I almost never give you anything in return... So, I... want to take my troubles out of your mind so you won't be as stressed. I'll handle it myself... I promise."
There's an awkward silence in the room. At the same time, Blue felt so desperate and helpless to make his parents happy. Usually, other ponies would make their parents proud by, say, getting an award, winning some kind of competition, or financially helping them. What did he do? Made his parents worried because he threw a tantrum at his class. Suddenly, he felt his mother's caring hoof stroking his mane.
"Blue, I'm happy that you'll try to fix your... problem. But, if you need help, I'm always here." The mare smiled weakly. "And don't worry about me... Like I said, I'm not upset with you. I always at your back, because... I'm your mother."
"...Mother..." Blue felt tears forming at his eyes. He always gets emotional with things like this. His mother pulled him into a hug, and he gladly accepted it, even returning it. He felt his mother really deserves a hug more then him.
Blue didn't meet his father until the next day because he needed to work overtime. He is rather indifferent about what happened, however. He talked to him about physically attacking another pony, but allows him to take his time to solve the problem.
Unfortunately, Blue still cannot muster his courage to come to school today. He's more scared of his guilt rather of the threat of being bullied again. As a compensation, he studied by himself at home, mostly about the subject he's supposed to learn if he went to school today.
That evening, however, Blue got an unexpected knock on the door...
"Ball Hoops? Royal Suit? What the heck are you two doing here?"
Both ponies scratches the ground with their hooves, keeping their head low. To be honest, it looked kinda depressing since both of them didn't bully him as much as the others.
"We... came to make sure you're okay, Blue." Hoops said, his voice is filled with concern, or seemed like concern.
"Well, what do you think?" Blue looked away after his snark comment. It felt wrong to tell them off, but apparently he still hold some anger towards his classmates.
"Blue, I... We're so sorry." Royal Suit said. "Personally, I thought the surprise would go wrong, but... my friends..."
"Forced you? You're saying you don't want to do it, but you DID it anyway?" Blue asked with a piercing gaze, that soon softens.
"I... We swear to Celestia, we never meant to hurt you yesterday. It was Topaz and Lily's idea to... piss you off at the beginning." Ball Hoops explained.
"And you did." Blue jams his eye shut and shook his head. He can feel something wet in his eyes just by remembering what happened yesterday. "...You know what, I admit that you... wanted to give something to me, and that's nice, but you guys took the 'piss me off' part too far."
Royal and Ball looked at each other, then back to Blue. "So, Blue? W-Will you forgive us?"
Conflicting feeling whipped up a cyclone in the pegasus's heart. It's easy to say yes, but he's not sure doing that will make him feel better, and he doesn't want to lie to his classmates. Thinking back, however, Royal Suit and Ball Hoops did little during their play in his birthday, and did not hurt him directly. They're just two of those who got dragged into peer pressure by Lily and Topaz. Yes, those two ponies are the masterminds, not these two. Sighing, Blue lowers his head.
"Just you two, I can forgive..." Blue said. "But, I can never forget what happened yesterday. I don't hate you, Ball, and Royal. I just... wished you two stopped Topaz before he did this to me..."
"...I understand." Royal lowered his head. "And, thank you for forgiving us. I'll make it up to you one day." A slight smile is visible on Royal's face.
"I guess we should leave..." Ball Hoops turned around, ready to walk away. "We've bothered you long enough."
Without any other words, the duo slowly walked away from Blue's doorsteps, observed by the blue pegasus who haven't moved an inch from his spot. He wonders if he'll get more visitors in the next days, or Ball and Royal are the only ones that cared about what happened in his birthday.
It can't be, there's still them...
Until the weekend comes, Blue still stayed at home. Even his parents started to become worried with him. After much arguing between the family, especially with his father who kept telling him to go to school, Blue promised that he'll return to school at monday. To be honest, self learning all the time gets tedious.
Now that he thought about it, Blue haven't had any of his classmates or friends visit him since Ball and Royal. He guessed that those two ponies relayed his condition to the rest of the class. Not that he hoped his classmates will look for him out of worry. But there are two ponies that he had hoped to meet again...
...At least, one of them did.
"Clear Flask..." Blue stared at the white mare on his doorstep.
"Blue..." Clear's face showed an obvious sadness. "May I come in...?"
"I guess so... My parents are away for a while." Blue moved over to allow Clear Flask enter his home. It's nothing wierd, she often visited Blue's house for study sessions and whatnot. As she walked by, Blue noticed she had a scroll sticking out at the saddlebags she's wearing. Remembering to ask her about it later, Blue followed her and led her into his room, where they usually hang out in his house.
Both ponies sat on Blue's bed and started to talk together. Clear Flask said that most of Blue's classmates are uneasy about him being absent for days, and some teachers had asked her about him. In turn, Blue told her about his feeling about the whole incident since they haven't met again before his birthday.
"Oh, yeah, Clear... I meant to ask..." Blue glanced at the mare's saddlebag, particularly at the scroll sticking out from it. "What's that scroll?"
Clear visibly jolted, as if surprised. Much to Blue's own surprise, the mare's eyes started to become visibly wet as she reached for the scroll. With a shaky hoof, she gives it to Blue, who opened it and started reading.
Blue's own eyes started to become wet as well as he gasped.
"A few days ago... A-Ace got into a serious trouble with Rocket Flare... It seems that Ace is angry to him because he did things to you. As they we're arguing, Rocket socked Ace on the cheek, a-and..." Clear Flask started to cry, no longer trying to hide it. "The fight ended when... Ace smashed Rocket through a classroom window..."
That is something Blue had dreaded to ever happen. At the back of his head, he knows that Ace is the kind of pony who can get into a physical fight in school, whatever the reason is. But there's something worse written at the letter, that turns out to be written by Ace himself.
"He... He's moving to Cloudsdale... To join the Wonderbolt academy..?" Blue dropped the letter in shock.
"Yes... He and Rocket are both expelled because of the fight... He said to me he had planned to enter Wonderbolt next year anyway, but that means... W-We might not see him again..." Clear scooted herself closer to Blue. "I'll miss him... Oh, Blue..."
Out of the blue, Clear Flask suddenly hugged her best friend, crying on his shoulder. Blue did the same thing to her. It's horrible to hear how Ace almost ruined his life 'for his sake', and he might not meet him face to face again. He never got to say goodbye to him as well. Clear and Blue spends a couple of minutes calming down and wipe their tears away.
"I'm sorry that I have to tell you this, Blue... And sorry for taking too long to visit you... Been pretty busy with school." Clear firmly grabbed Blue's shoulder.
"Don't blame yourself..." Blue assured. "Besides, I'm sure Ace doesn't want us to be sad because of him. Because, that's just him, you know?"
Clear Flask snorts, a smile appears on the edge of her mouth. "Yeah, he'll say something that cliche for sure." The mare sighed, dropping her head low, but soon returned making eye contact. "I'm sure gonna miss him."
"Me too, Clear, me too..."
With another quick hug, Clear Flask bids goodbye to Blue, wishing him well, and assured him that returning to school would be for the best, noting the rather solemn atmosphere amongst the students, especially his classmates. Blue must agree with her, he can't avoid school forever. Perhaps it is time to be a stallion.
When Blue returned to school, he's immediately greeted by Clear Flask, Note Books, Camp Trail, and Rocky Path. All members of his small band of friends showed support and promised to help him if needed. But a rather unexpected welcome comes from Focus Sight.
"H~ey, Blue." Blue hears the pegasus called out to him, but his tone is unusually sad. It's very rare to see Focus without his trademark carefree smile that she shows almost twenty four seven.
"Focus, you need help again?" Blue asked.
"Listen, ma~n. Sorry about what I did t~o you." The pegasus said, rubbing the length of one of his forehoof with the other.
Blue cocked his head to the side. "Why are you apologizing? Are you part of the surprise too?" As far as he can tell, Focus didn't play any significant part in the birthday surprise.
Focus lowered his head, but kept eye contact with Blue. "Yeah, I was t~old to disturb you by asking you questions when you're up front, s~o you never had time to finish your problem." The pegasus looked away in shame.
To be honest, Blue didn't think that was an act. It's seemed just like him to keep asking him for solution for a simple math problem. Although, now that he remembered that his classmates had persuaded the teacher, it makes sense that Focus had a hoof in the whole thing. Blue shrugged, at least Focus didn't do anything outrageous, he can see him asking about solutions again in the future.
"I don't think you did anything wrong." Blue assured him, offering him the slightest of smiles. "There's no grudge between us, I swear."
Hearing this, Focus perked up and smiled at Blue. "Really? Thank Ce~lestia, I thought you don't want to be friends with me anymore. Who'll teach me if th~ere's a test?"
Blue shook his head in amusement, looks like Focus Sight will never change. However, he can tell that the pegasus is genuinely happy when he forgives him that he cannot help but smile as well. Focus walks beside Blue and wrapped one of his forehoof around his shoulder.
"But hey, to make it up to you, if you ever got in t~rouble like that again, tell me. I'll help you in any way I ca~n. Promise." Focus stated, giving Blue a firm nod, and Blue nodded back. Maybe he and Focus will be better friends.
Ever since that day, Blue never got bothered by Lily, Rose, or Topaz again. Speaking of Topaz, the yellow earth pony seems to lose his zest lately. Ever since Rocket Flare is gone (Along with Ace, sadly.), Topaz is much more 'passive'. He's less noisy, and when he's usually competitive in sports, he never pushed himself to the limit again. Perhaps the reason he haven't bothered Blue again is because he lost one of his friends. Silently, Blue felt a bit sorry for him.
As for Lily and Rose, nothing of interest happened to any of them other then the fact that they, thankfully, left Blue alone now. However, the shocker came when Blue graduated. Just after the result announcement, he learned that Rose fail to graduate, being the only one to do so. He remembered how she wailed in despair and cried as she ran out of the room. Karma can be very cruel, Blue thought, even more then he wanted to.
Even when they graduated from high school, Clear Flask, Note Books, Camp Trail, and Rocky Path remains friends with Blue Streak. However, he haven't met with Ace Baret since he 'saved' him at school. They do write letters to each other, but Ace took a long time to reply between letters, saying that he's really busy in the academy and aren't always allowed to write or receive letters.
Until now, Blue never celebrates his birthday again, and he does everything to make sure no one else knew about the date of his birthday. His closest friends avoid reminding him of his birthday as well upon his request. Sometimes, everytime the memories of his high school birthday surprise emerges for whatever reason, Blue would silently cry to himself.
"Yeah, if I were his mother, I'll be ashamed to have a son this careless and unresponsible!"
"Heck, you think his parents love him?"
Especially if those sentences pop up, it's not rare for Blue to enter in his room and bawl loudly. As he grew up, he needs to live on his own to make a living. The early years are horrible as kept moving from town to town to find a job and get his own place to live, and the fear of him letting his parents down endlessly creeps in his head. It's not until he arrived in Ponyville that he found a stable job and his new home, but he still felt it's not enough to make his parents proud. He did, however, make new friends, and one of them is Pinkie Pie, who quickly became a good friend with the pegasus.
And thus, this is where they stand now.
Pinkie's eyes seems to be swirling after listening to Blue's entire story. The pink mare shook her head to restore herself to the current timeline.
"I'm... I'm sorry, Pinkie. But please... I... I can't go through another birthday party without feeling sad." Blue said, feeling ashamed. "And, in a party, that's not how you're supposed to feel, right?"
Pinkie opened her mouth to say something, but the stallion is correct. When you throw a party, you're supposed to be happy, and cheerful, and sing happy songs, not having an upside down smile. Pinkie's mane isn't as bubbly as before, is this the first time she won't throw a party for somepony's birthday? Blue mournfully walked pass her, and opened the door.
"I'm going to the market for a while... If you want to leave, please lock the door from the outside, a-and leave the keys under the carpet, okay...?" Blue said as he closed the door, leaving Pinkie in his house.
Pinkie didn't move for a good amount of time. She is busy transmitting power into her cotton candy powered brain to think. Not throwing a birthday party on somepony's birthday is a very weird logic, but Blue said he'll feel sad if she throws a birthday party for him. Why did he feel sad in a birthday party again? What made him feel really happy again? What's Blue favorite cake again? Is there some way to make a birthday party for Blue that won't make him sad? All the tiny Pinkie Pies in her brain are running around collecting all the data written in colorful frosting and collecting them together in one spot. Eventually, all those colorful frosting merged into a big circle shaped pile of frosting colored like a rainbow, and it suddenly erupted like a volcano, sending confetti everywhere.
A loud 'PING!' resonated from Pinkie's head, and the mare jumped as her body inflated briefly before returning to normal. She just got an idea, an amazing idea. Smacking her forehooves together, she declared to the world.
"I'm going to throw the most amazing party for Blue Streak, ever!!"
With that, Pinkie zipped out from the house, returning back again to lock the door and hid the key under the carpet in less then two seconds. A trail of white smoke can be seen towards the direction of Sugarcube Corner.
Author's Note
Edit: Whoa, +1 dislike in the first 2 minutes? that was fast
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A Birthday Party to Cure a Birthday
Chapter 1: The Pegasus Victim of the Incident
Pinkie Pie's basement is considered as an uncharted territory for other ponies. What's down there is a subject of debate. Some ponies said it's a vault filled with all kinds of sweet treats known to ponykind, while others say it's a place where ponies got 'turned' into cupcakes, which is absurd, to say the least. In truth, it works as Pinkie's party planning headquarters. All of Pinkie's tools of trade from streamers to chocolate fountains are present, including some of her party cannons. A list of Ponyville residents, including their birthdays and info were kept in a large cabinet, among other things amongst them that Pinkie somehow got. It's a daily routine for Pinkie to check the the list to find out whose birthday it is today.
And today, according to the pink pony's birthday calendar, is the birthday of...
"Ooh! It's Blue Streak's birthday today!" Pinkie clapped her hooves in joy.
Blue Streak is the most recent newcomer to Ponyville. The blue pegasus marks his first year living in Ponyville. Although he's a colt of few words, he's been known as a friendly and nice pony once he opens up to somepony. She remembers when she first meet him in her 'Welcome to Ponyville!" party. It's always a bit awkward for somepony when she does throws that party, but in the end, Blue Streak said that he 'really enjoys it'. Since then, Pinkie and him become good friends in mere months.
This will be the first time Blue Streak celebrates his birthday in Ponyville. Pinkie can already imagine the festives in her head. Colorful balloons and streamers will liven the atmosphere, all the yummy and sweet goodies, oh, the joys of a party! Of course, since this is Blue Streak's first birthday party in Ponyville, it's going to be extra special! She can't wait to prepare everything for the moment. And so, Pinkie bounced happily deeper into her basement, collecting everything needed for the party.
With a whip of his wing, Blue Streak styles his signature long black mane that slightly covers his right eye, smiling at himself at the mirror. He's going through his morning routine, making himself look presentable after a quick breakfast and shower. He took a quick glance at the calendar beside the mirror, but his expression only turns grim.
"Sigh ... Last day off." The pegasus had requested a few days off because he's not feeling too well lately. Although he recovered very quickly after a good day rest at home. This gives him some holidays where, he's well enough to go to work, but he already told his supervisor that he needs several days to rest. Some ponies might call this slacking, but in reality, Blue Streak is far from being a lazy pony at his job.
Today, the colt realized that he needs to do some shopping to replenish his diminishing food supply. A bag of apples from the market would be lovely. Wearing his saddlebags, Blue opens his front door and takes a step outside.
"SURPRISE!!"
And was forced several steps back when Pinkie appeared right in front of his face.
Blue Streak fell onto his rump on the floor, looking confused as confetties from nowhere appears behind the pink mare, who's standing tall on her two legs, spreading her forehooves wide. It took the pegasus a few moments before registering what just happened a few seconds ago.
"O-Oh, Pinkie..." He chuckled, albeit a bit nervously. "What brings you here early?"
"What else, silly? Don't you know what day it is today?" Pinkie shoves her grin pasted face to the pegasus.
"Uh..." Blue Streak's yellow eyes started to zip around nervously. "It's... Tuesday, right?" That response made Pinkie giggle as she booped the blue pegasus.
"Well, you are right! But do you know what's special about this Tuesday? We're going to have a party! Because it's your birthday!" More random confetti shoots out from thin air as Pinkie repeated her motion when she first met Blue today.
Suddenly, time seems to froze briefly for the two ponies. Pinkie expected a response from Blue, but none came. Not a happy response, not a shrug like those ponies who don't really care about their birthday (Something that Pinkie still fail to understand), not even any kind of sound. Instead, Pinkie got a brand new response that's she never expected to get when she reminds somepony of their birthday.
Blue Streak is hyperventilating. His pupils shrunk, and he continuously exhales noisily, as if having a panic attack. He seems to be mumbling something as well, but too incoherent for Pinkie to understand. Sweat drenches his body, literally whipping a storm over nothing. Realizing something is wrong, the pink mare shot a confused look at the colt.
"Blue? Are you alright?" Pinkie raised an eyebrow. Eventually, Blue Streak manages to control his breathing again as he stood up. He still looks like a nervous wreck, though, his eyes can't stop zipping around. With a worried look, he speaks up.
"Pinkie, listen... You're a good friend, b-but..." Blue slightly shoved Pinkie into his house so he can close the door. "P-Please don't tell anypony about this..."
"About what?" Now Pinkie is even more confused. Usually, the pink pony is known to be rather childish and naive, but she knows something is wrong, and Blue Streak is going to do some serious talk. She is also been curious, how can a birthday party cause a pony to act this way, anyway? She hopes that this terrified pegasus can shed some light.
"I am afraid of birthday parties."
Now that's something that rivals Twilight's fear of quesadillas. Quesadillas are... cheesy, for one thing. But birthday parties? Is it the balloons? It can't be, there's nothing bad about balloons. The cakes? She got a nightmare about monster cakes with Princess Luna once, and she's still not afraid of them. The chocolate fountain? You can just drink it, there's no harm at all. There's just nothing in a birthday party in Pinkie's head that can be scary.
"Why?" Came a simple question from the pink mare. Blue Streak shakily exhales, and looked at Pinkie with almost pleading eyes.
"It's all because of my... classmates... happened six years ago..."
Author's Note
Well? What do you think happened six years ago?
