Author's Note

Slight trigger warning. This chapter does not have any excruciating details but it does have a lot of sad and deep emotions. they won't be a deep dive but i can tell you now, i had a very hard time writing this chapter because of said emotions.

Chapter 2: Our Flaws Make us Real

Twilight ended her speech and looked on the crowd, still seeing some very confused faces from the parents... But the fillies and colts all looked... angry? No, conflicted. Some fillies and colts looked towards their parents, who were all pondering this new option. Some of them looked scared, and some of them looked worried. Twilight's eyes landed on a set of three ponies that weren't looking at her. But instead were looking towards their filly that had been summoned. Their eyes filled with looks of concern and worry. Twilight looked towards the young filly and recognised her as Lazzari. The young filly she had taken quite an interest in due to her surrounding herself in conflicting ponies that never seemed to get along. But that alone wasn't her reasoning for choosing her.

Lazzari was always smiling. Even in her classes, and of course when she was given a reason not to smile she didn't. But her resting face always seemed to be that of a smile. She always put on an air of kindness. Whenever Twilight saw her interact with another pony, it was always started with a cheerful 'hello', with most of her conversations ending awkwardly because the pony she was talking to never seemed to want to talk to her, or seemed to busy with something else on their minds. But Twilight saw right through her. Well, she didn't have to see it. Even though she could see straight through her smile. There was one day in particular where Lazzari had left her class. She had been walking the halls trying to see if she could see around the school.

***Lazzari***

Twilight walked down the long corridor of the 8th grade hallways of the Crystal Grove middle school. She was walking along quietly, scanning the halls. This school was very driven on the factor of allowing students to find their voices through other mediums. Artwork, Poetry, and sculptures were plastered all over the hallways. She stopped to look at a particular painting. It was of a night sky, riddled with stars, but in the corner was what looked to be the silhouette of a mare looking up at the sky, while sitting in a field of darkened grass. She looked closely at the painting and glance to the right corner of the paining. In a very sharp, white painted line was an insignia. It looked like an 'L', but the lower end of the 'L' was curved down sharply and made a small heart underneath it.

Twilight was ready to look away from the painting, when a door suddenly opened and a young pegasus mare walked out. She didn't even realise that Twilight was standing right there. She instead started running down the hall once the door to her class had closed. Twilight took a moment to look at the door but then followed after the young mare, keeping her distance as to not startle her or make her realise she was being watched. Twilight followed the young mare all the way to a dark and quiet place in the school, that was beyond the grade divided hallways. It looked to be a quiet spot for the fillies and colts to read or study away from the chatter and bustle of the day. But as she grew closer she heard... sniffling? Twilight quickly used her magic to cast an invisibility spell on herself and watched from afar to see what would happen.

Lazzari was curled up, laying on the floor. Her tail was tightly wrapped around her and she was crying. Twilight had yet to see such a weakness from the seemingly always bright and bubbly young mare. She watched even closer as Lazzari suddenly shifted and pulled out a picture from her wing and held it in her hooves. As twilight looked closer, she could see very faint marks of darker outlines in her fur around the back of her hooves. Were those... scars? She couldn't quite tell from her distance, and her crystal cote getting in the way, but the darker fur color was definitely noted. She watched closely once again at Lazzari' face, seeing her wipe the tears away as she stared at the picture.

".... Im sorry dad... I wish I was stronger, like you." Lazzari said in a very hushed tone but just loud enough for Twilight to hear it.

Twilight could feel her heart sinking in her chest. This young mare was definitely different. She always held a strong air to herself. Always trying her best to make other smile or make herself appear as friendly as possible. But underneath all that she seemed to have a side to her that nopony ever saw. She perked up as she saw Lazzari shift again. Lazzari had sat up and stared at the picture more.

"You do everything for me... Your tough and strong and push through the pain to make sure that i'm ok. You do things for me that mom never could.... You always make it better when she's brought up just because you know it always makes me sad.... And no matter how much you try to hide it I can always see it... the silent grunts and groans. the pain you endure just to make sure I can have lunch at school everyday... and make sure I have books for school... and so much more." Lazzari had paused and sighed and clutched the picture to her chest, letting more tears fall again. "I wish I could be that strong... I wish I could look challenges in the eyes like that and hold strong like you do... I wish.... and hope that someday.... i'll be just as strong as you daddy..."

Twilight could feel tears welling up in her eyes as she watched Laz poor her heart out. This was clearly meant to be personal and she felt kind of bad watching it. It was clear to her that these where things Lazzari wished she could say to her father, but could never find the strength to. This young mare... definitely had some other problems. This was just what she was looking for in a pony to attend her new school. She would have to keep a closer eye on this young mare.

Twilight flinched as Lazzari got up, wiped her tears away, took a few long and deep breaths, and tucked the picture back underneath her wing. She quietly stood there for a moment, taking a few more breaths before straightening her posture and putting on another soft smile. She stepped out of the dark corner and walked back in the direction of her class. Twilight was about to reverse her invisibility spell before she heard another quiet sniffle from behind her. She turned and froze abruptly as she came almost chest to muzzle with a young unicorn mare. Twilight didn't move, but she quickly recognized this mare as a student she had already chosen to attend her new school. And she was looking directly at Lazzari.

***Lazzari***

Twilight took another sigh as she looked away from Lazzari's family, who were now all three questioning her. Lazzari was an... Interesting young mare. Based on what she had seen from the young mare already, it appeared that her mother was not in the picture. Twilight didn't know much about her, but that might change if her family decides to allow her to go. She would make quite the interesting student for Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, maybe even Rainbow Dash.

Twilight turned again and looked around the crowd for another young mare with fiery red hair that you could never miss. She quickly spotted Hemlock Blossom. She was shifting her eyes very rapidly between her father, who was stairing at the ground and looking as if he was thinking very hard, and the ground. She had a very panicked look on her face, and Twilight new exactly why.

***Hemlock Blossom***

Twilight flinched and backed away, almost no sound coming from her hooves as she did. She watched Hemlock closely. She knew Lazzari and Hemlock were friends, but... why didn't she say or do anything just now if she had seen that whole thing?

"Doesn't that make you feel bad?"

A new voice caught both their ears. Twilight remained silent as to not draw attention to the fact that there was a third pony with the two of them. Twilight looked behind Hemlock to see a dark tan pegasus mare with a brown mane. She wore a look of concern but also slight irritation. She saw Hemlock flatten her expression and she turned to look at the new mare.

"What's it matter to you! You didn't do anything about it either. Your her friend too aren't you!? Eh Feather." Hemlock exclaimed, in a hushed but angered tone as to not draw attention to herself in the hallway.

Feather lightly shook her head. "I was too busy wondering why her closest friend was hesitating to comfort her when she clearly needed it. Why did you hesitate? Is it because you feel you can't say anything that would comfort her? Or is it because your too high off your ass to even form some coherent thoughts, and words that you could possibly say!"

Hemlocks eye twitched. Feather had just jabbed at her very deeply. "To hell with you bitch! You always bring that shit up. Is there ever a moment where you don't hate me!" Hemlock exclaimed, still in a hushed but slightly louder tone.

Feather lifted an eyebrow. "I don't hate you Hemlock, I just question the choices you make. You seem to make a lot of bad ones. Drugs, alcohol, making bits by selling illegal substances. I wouldn't have such a strongly aggressive view against you if it weren't for those things. You don't seem to get or understand that your actions have an effect on others." Feather turned her head in the direction Lazzari had walked back from. "And trust me. Laz is definitely one of those affected ponies. She doesn't tell you EVERYTHING you know. She confides in me a lot too."

Hemlock growled and gritted her teeth. She took a step forward, but paused and scoffed and turned and walked away.

Twilight looked between the two girls. Who was this other mare. She clearly knew both Lazzari and Hemlock. The reason she had chosen Hemlock was because she had caught her in the bathroom, using and selling drugs. but after the whole ordeal just sat and cried for the entirety of a class period. She knew Hemlock had to have some personal issues. But who was this other mare? Hemlock didn't seem to like her very much. But they both seemed to care about Lazzari. She decided to watch this mare as well.

***Hemlock Blossom***

Twilight took another and deeper long sigh. Hemlock was definitely going to be harder to get through too. Some personal lessons From herself and Fluttershy might benefit her. She only saw one pony with Hemlock. She could only assume the stallion sitting next to her was her father. Hell they looked almost identical. same fire red hair and almost same cote color, only her fathers was more grey than Hemlocks. The cherry on top was he was also a unicorn. Twilight watched as the stallion turned to Hemlock and gave her a stern look and proceeded to speak with her.

Twilight looked around some more. seeing the other parents and fillies and colts from the other schools conversing with their children. She was looking for another specific mare. She scanned the crowd again and found what she was looking for. Brooksdale Feather. She was stairing at nothing and looked heavily confused. Her parents were speaking with her but it looked like she wasnt registering their words. She had to think long and hard about choosing Brooksdale. Brooksdale seemed to have an ok family life. But her personal life however, seemed to be in shambles.

***Brooksdale Feather***

Twilight was walking along the cafeteria, smiling at all the students as she passed by. She had asked to sit down at a few tables and listen in on some conversations and ask a few questions and made fun conversation with a lot of them. Most of the students seemed to be of higher class living, but preferred the laid back vibe, and preferred not to flaunt their money, besides having some expensive saddle bags. After leaving a table and watching the lunch hours shift, she saw two ponies emerge. One of them she had been keeping an eye on. The other she had yet to see. It was the mare that had confronted Hemlock after seeing lazzari' breakdown in the halls. Hemlock had called her 'Feather'. the other was a young stallion she hadn't seen before. They didn't head to the lunch line though, instead they stood off to the side. Twilight decided to get closer and watch from afar.

"What do you mean? Am I really that pushy?" Feather asked sounding a little sad and dejected as she pouted at the young stallion.

"No, Feather, that's not what I said." He took a long sigh. "Look, this isnt working out, my friends are starting to get uncomfortable with you around. They don't like how you kind of point the obvious out all the time. And frankly i'm getting tired of it too."

Feather visibly reclined and looked to be on the verge of tears. "Wait, are you breaking up with me?!"

The stallion took a sigh. "Yes I am, i'm sorry. this just isn't for me."

Twilight visibly cringed at the sight. 'ugh, overly dramatic teenage romance'. Twilight was never one for Rarity's sappy romance dramas. Fluttershy always watched them with her. But something was different about this. Feather looked genuinely crushed. Not like the mares in those movies. She watched as the stallion left her standing there. She thought about stepping up to comfort the young mare, but she didn't have to.

"Come on Feather, I saw the whole thing. lets go to our spot. You can have some of my lunch. I'm not that hungry anyway." Lazzari had appeared next to feather, a lunch tray on her wing and she was pulling gently on Feathers arm.

Twilight watched as the two walked away into the 8th grade hallway. She cast her invisibility spell on herself again and followed after them.

After watching them walk for about a minute, they stopped at the very back end of the 8th grade hallway. This area was vacant of any ponies, making Twilight wonder if the teachers knew that the girls were even there. She watched from afar as Lazzari sat down and draped a wing over Feathers back. Feather was a much larger pegasus then Lazzari. But it didn't stop her from trying. Come to think of it. Lazzari's wings where much larger than she had expected. They were more proportionate to that of a normal sized pegasus. It wasn't easily noticed at first but when they were extended it was easy to tell.

"Focus Twilight, focus." She gently put a hoof too her head and watched the girls once more. Feather was leaning into Lazzari' side, and crying, very hard. Lazzari was gently rubbing her back with her wing and saying nothing. She was giving Feather comfort with presence until she felt like she could speak.

After about 5 minutes of crying, Feather finally calmed down. Feather sniffled and burrowed herself into Lazzaris side. Her hooves where tucked in close to her body, her wings wrapped around her, and her tail tucked very tightly in. Without even looking at Lazzari, she spoke.

"That's the 5th one this year.... is it me?... Am i really that bad at being around others... Do I really put on that bad of a vibe?" Feathers tone was very somber and filled with hiccups as she spoke. Twilight could tell that Lazzari was holding back tears herself. From what she had seen from Lazzari so far, she didn't like being touched at all. If her and Feather where close enough to the point of Lazzari allowing her to touch her, then they must be close friends.

"Feather... you are NOT a bad pony. At least to me you're not. You were there for me when I needed it most.... Maybe someday I'll tell you how much it meant to me that you decided to talk to me, but for now just know that I'm always here and i'm not going anywhere. If you ever need a hug, if you ever want advice, anything, i'm always here." Laz rubbed her wing against Feather more and giving her a very warm smile. "Besides, I don't think Dunk was worth it. He's to into his sports and doesn't share many of your interests." Laz flinched as she felt Feathers grip on her tighten. "Er, um, and I'm sure there is somepony out there for you. When he comes along, I'm sure he will be perfect for you."

Twilight watched the two as they stayed there for awhile. This was another reason she was deciding to pick Lazzari. She was always full of happiness and always knew what to say in a time like this. She always had everypony's best interests at heart.

***Brooksdale Feather***

Twilight sighed again. This was going to be interesting. She looked to see several other ponies where looking at her again. She put on a smile and stepped forward again. "Please, I'm sure you wish to get more information." Twilight made a gesture away, pointing towards another group of lined up ponies. " These royal advisors will be happy to give you more information. I wish i could stay and help explain more, but I must be on my way back to Ponyville. I hope to see some of these bright young fillies and colts after the summer is over!" Twilight flashed another forced smile and turned and walked away from the eyes all looking to her. Several royal guards followed her out as she walked threw the second set of doors leading out of the garden.

***

Twilight sighed and drooped her head once the doors to the garden closed. Was this a good idea? Could she make a difference in these young ponies lives. What if things blow completely up in her face. She is, after all, putting ponies who had drug problems and emotional problems into the mix. She had solutions for this... but most wouldn't like them. She sighed and sat down and leaned against the wall.

"Gee Twilight, Could you have been more veag to them?"

A very familiar, feminine raspy voice caught Twilights ears. She looked up to see Rainbow Dash standing in front of her with the rest of her friends standing with her. Twilight flattened her ears and gave Dash a disapproving look. "Rainbow, i'm the Princess of FRIENDSHIP, it might put off the parents to hear such things come from me. I want these kids to have a better future, and I don't think saying, 'some of your kids have drug or other emotional problems' was going to go very well." She sighed, softening her gaze. "Besides, the last thing I want here is for parents to start freaking out. I told the royal advisors not to give any personal reports of specific fillies and colts. They are only to answer questions about the school."

"I don't know Twi, I don't feel very.... comfortable, lyin' to the folks. Just t'aint right. They should know whats going on in their kids lives." Applejack had stepped up, she spoke in a concerned tone. Twilight looked to her and sighed.

"I know... I just feel very weird about this whole thing. I'm all for trying to make their lives better, but...." Twilight trailed off. She had a very conflicted look on her face.

Rarity stepped up. "But?"

Twilight sighed again, this one louder and longer, followed by a very frustrated and loud groan as she flared her wings out. "I DON"T KNOW! I wish I knew why, but I can't seem to shake the feeling that something is going to go wrong here..." She groaned again, quieter this time, and buried her face in her hooves. Fluttershy stepped forward and sat down beside Twilight and rubbed her shoulders.

"Don't worry Twilight, no matter what happens we are all going to be there. We are all here to help. How about you tell us about some of these students you found." Fluttershy said, trying to lighten the mood a bit, while smiling warmly at Twilight. Twilight gave a smile right back at her.

"Well they are all very... Interesting. All of them have some sort of emotional or physical problem, but three of the fillies really stand out. First, there's Hemlock Blossom. She's an 8th year unicorn mare. She has quite the foul mouth, she has difficulty being friendly to others. and on top of it, she has some drug problems. I specifically plan to assign her to Applejack, Fluttershy and myself." She paused, taking another glance around to see her friends where listening intently. She smiled and continued. "There is Brooksdale Feather. She is very blunt and most of the time way to honest. Its gotten her into a situation where others don't like to be around her. I plan on having her take some honesty lessons with Applejack, but i'll mostly keep her to basic courses with friendship. Other than that, I haven't seen any other problems with her. But I have a feeling something else is going on under her brutally honest personality." She paused again and took a long sigh and looked down, frowning. "Then there is Lazzari.... She is... interesting to say the least. I'll have to show you all my report on her to let you have a full grasp of her problems I've seen so far. What about all of you? How did your searches go?" She asked, shifting the discussion slightly.

Pinkie Pie bounced up, smiling really wide. "OH OH OH, I found some pretty interesting ponies that are sure to help the dynamic of the school, so it's not so.... angry, hehe." Pinkie exclaimed sheepishly. Twilight giggled a bit. This was exactly what Twilight wanted Pinkie to do. Without some silly or fun ponies the school would just feel like a war zone.

Rarity stepped up next. "I found a few fabulous young fillies and colts, but I will have to show you my report on two young fillies found In Manehatten." Rarity said while flipping her mane.

"I pretty much found the generic troubled fillies and colts. Nothin' to extreme, but enough to need a small push in the right direction." Applejack said, tipping her hat.

"I found a lot of ponies struggling with confidence. I even found a griffin. I'll have to show you my report on them all." Fluttershy chimed in. They all looked to Rainbow Dash who had yet to say what she found.

"Well Twi, I'll be honest, lots of the ponies I found had the same problems. But one stands out from the rest. He is a weird case. His report is like, 7 pages long." Rainbow said. She looked back to Twilight, who was now in the process of standing up.

"Well girls, it looks like we have quite the challenge on our hooves. So let's not waste anymore time. We should all head back to Ponyville and start preparations around the school. We will receive letters from all the family's who are deciding to allow their student to attend our new school." Twilight said as she and her friends started for the doors leading out to the hall.

***

White Void watched as the Princess left. 'This school will be focused on students who have difficulties in their lives.' Those words just kept repeating in his head, over and over again. He knew Laz had some troubles, but... was it really bad enough to catch the princesses attention? Was Laz hiding something from them? He was extremely confused. But now he was more worried. He turned back to Laz, and she looked terrified. She looked as if anymore questions would break her. He hated seeing his daughter this way, and he wasn't sure what to do. Should he ask her about it? Should he press for details? He was at a complete loss. He sighed quietly to himself and looked back to the ground. No, he shouldn't press her for anything. He can't just make her talk, if anything that will only make it worse. If she wants to tell them what's going on, she'll do it once she's ready. He knew his daughter well. Even if she had been hiding something from them, he still knew who she was as a pony. If she wanted to talk, she'd talk. He turned his head back up and meet her eyes. He quickly changed his expression to an understanding and caring one.

"Laz, why don't we go find out some information about this knew school. Who knows, maybe you might want to go there." He said. He saw Blush Brush give him a disapproving look, but he ignored it. If this whole days events was to tell anything, it was that Laz was not completely honest with how things at school where going. He wanted to get to the bottom of it just as much as his mother did, but he wasn't about to push a subject that clearly made her feel uncomfortable. He got up and walked beside her towards the royal advisors waiting to talk. He recognised a few of them, having seen them running about the palace many times before. He was sure his mother knew them all by name by now. He picked a red unicorn mare and stood in front of her. "Excuse me, but, could we have a bit more information about this knew school. I'm not so sure about all of this. I think having some better details might help the situation a bit." He said, keeping his composure as calm as possible.

The mare smiled and used her magic to levitate over what looked like a pamphlet, and handed it to him. "This will answer lots of questions that don't get answered right here. What do you want to know?" The mare asked in a kind tone, which made Void much more comfortable.

He looked down at the pamphlet and it said 'Friendship Academy' on it. "Well, first, I was hoping to get a bit more background on what Twilight meant by, 'Difficulties' when she spoke."

Laz was staring nervously at the ground. She was freaking out. what had Twilight seen? Was she seriously enough to catch the princesses attention? There were more than enough private moments she had while the princess was there, had she seen all of them? What did her dad think? What did her grandparents think? what in equestria was she going to do? She had so many questions in her head. She was starting to freak out. But she saw how calm her dad looked and it put her a bit at ease for the moment. She just couldn't get a plain read on the situation yet. The red mares voice caught her ears again as she started to speak.

"Well, While the princess was here, she observed many students and many different schools. She was specifically looking for students who may have some troubles in their lives that could possibly be dragging them down, or disturbing their performance at school. Thankfully I know your family, thanks to Blush Brush I've heard alot about Laz here. And while I can not share the Princess personal reports with you on Laz, I can tell you that Princess Twilight saw some things and qualities in her that she would like for her school. Twilight and the rest of her friends weren't just out looking for troubled kids. Having a school full of just fillies and colts that have personal problems would be a bad idea. There were other factors in looking for a student. Lots of factors being how they interact with others. What kind of air does this pony give off. How do they present themselves to others. Among many others, and the Princess saw not just the bad qualities that could be helped with Lazzari, but also many good qualities that could be improved even more. Things such as strong loyalty and extreme compassion and kindness. These qualities will help make the environment at the school much less stressful and make it easier for the students to interact and get along with each other well." The mare finished with a bright smile. Blush brush suddenly stepped up, a look of concern all over her face.

"Wait, Sunbeam, you said Bad qualities. What signifies as bad qualities?" She asked, lowering but turning her ears forward.

"Well, I can say right here and right now Blush, Laz does not have any problems in the more severe categories of focus. Many fillies and colts were chosen based on how their home life seemed or if they had some clear substance abuse problems. I know you and your family, so I know for a fact that you don't have to worry about that. And like I said I can't give you the report the princess has on Laz, but i can tell you what the report entailed. She had seen some emotional things from Laz that could mean disaster for her future if left unchecked. It's not my place to say much on it, but the Princess has requested you not push the matter if she doesn't want to talk about it. She made a clear point to push across that the last thing she wanted was for the students to feel uncomfortable with the whole thing. I hope you understand." Sunbeam said, putting a soft, understanding smile on.

They all looked extremely concerned now. As if this situation wasn't confusing enough. Chocolate Glaze stepped forward this time. He looked very concerned but he hardened his gaze.

"You said other fillies and colts who had clear substance abuse problems. I know I don't have to worry about our little Lazie on that front, but, how does the princess intend to handle these ponies? If they have abuse problems what's going to stop them from using or trying to get others into using as well?" It was a very good question. One Sunbeam was ready for.

"Several therapy sessions and lessons will be held throughout the course of the first month to help the students see the importance of their own health. All the while for the first month they will be chaperoned outside the school by a staff member if they wish to leave the campus. We hae several Experts on site for such matters and you don't have to worry about a thing. Students are being paired together in dormitories based on reports that where given. And of course, separated by gender. The campus is quite large. In the pamphlet I gave you, It has a date and time for after the end of the school year. This is for if you want to tour the campus before hoof and make your decision then." Sunbeam pointed to the pamphlet in White voids magic. "Any other questions?"

Laz turned to look at her family seeing they where all pondering things. She stepped forward, looking nervous. "How involved will, the family's be in this whole process?" Laz asked. She knew her family loved her, but she wasn't sure how involved she wanted her family to be in a personal endeavor. Sunbeam smiled.

"Families are going to be asked to keep their distance. They are all allowed to send as many letters as they wish to their filly or colt and keep in as close communication with them as they would like. A report will be sent out every semester on grades and performance at the school. So the parents or guardians will never have to worry about how their student is doing so far from home." She explained. This earned a sigh of relief from all three of the ponies in front of her and a nod from Lazzari.

Laz internally sighed in relief. She was heavily considering this new option. She took a moment to glance around, looking for her friends. She saw hemlock almost immediately. It was kind of hard to miss her fire red hair against her almost snow white cote. She noticed her father asking her a lot of questions, and she was struggling to answer them. He looked very confused. Laz knew that Hemlock was never one to talk to her family, most of the time she shut herself in her bedroom and played video games alone. That's just what she preferred. At least that's what she thought hemlock preferred. Laz sighed looking around again. The next pony was much harder to find due to her not so unique color patterns.

She looked around harder until her eyes caught a tan color and she fixed on it. Feather was sitting still stiff as a statue while talking to another royal advisor. She looked incredibly scared. She had never seen Feather look this flustered about something other than being broken up with. She couldn't help but wonder why she had been chosen. What did the princess see in Feather? Miss Sunbeam said something about the princess and her friends looking for other qualities in ponies to lighten the mood of the school. Could this be one of the reasons she was chosen?

She sighed and shook her head out gently. She had a choice to make now. She didn't know if she wanted to go to this new school yet. She knew she would have plenty of time to think about it though. She sighed as she turned to her family. They were all looking at her. some concern and curiosity in their eyes. She then realised that she was going to have to try and explain things to them. Just how to do that though?...