Princess Twilight Meets New Friends

After arriving on the beach, Princess Twilight, Timber and Gloriosa exited their car, and made their way back to the sand.

“I’ll get back to you two later. I should get to my other friends.” Twilight said.

“Okay,” Gloriosa said, as she went her own way to reunite with her friends.

“See you later,” Timber waved, as he trotted back to his post at the lifeguard tower.

After the others left, Twilight returned to the beach, thinking to herself that she should spend some time with the girls named Juniper and Wallflower. She hadn’t yet done anything with them, and thought she would like to see what they were like.

When she arrived on the beach, she found the others in a heated argument with one another. It seemed that Juniper and Wallflower were on one side, and the Shadowbolts on the other.

“You’re exaggerating. Twilight had fun out there!” Sour Sweet yelled.

“That’s not the point! The point is she could of drowned!” Juniper shouted back.

“What’s your problem, lady?! We showed her what to do! She understood all the safety measures!” Indigo retorted.

Twilight was shocked by the sight. However much she enjoyed her time on the water, she never thought it would escalate to something like this.

“Wait. I think I have an idea. She’s an expert on friendship, right? Maybe if you do something with her that’s a little less dangerous, and a little more...nice?” Wallflower meekly suggested.

“Listen here, flower girl!” Sugarcoat said, “Our school isn’t all about friendship. We may have done that in the Friendship Games, and for the music video, but that’s a different story!”

“And if you think that you’re going to spend the time with a Princess who’s only going to stay here for the whole day on the beach, then you need to think of something to show her how much of a friend you are,” Sunny added.

Wallflower would have responded, had she not noticed that Twilight was standing behind of the Shadowbolts. “Ummmm? You might need to turn around,” she said, after stalling.

“For what!?” Sour Sweet said.

It was at that moment that the Shadowbolts turned around and saw Princess Twilight. They were taken completely by surprise, and left speechless.

“What’s going on?” Twilight asked.

Sour Sweet was overcome with guilt and fear. They had only just started making a new friend, and were suddenly in danger of losing her.

“So...you heard that?” Lemon said.

“Yes,” Twilight simply answered.

Though she didn’t know much about friendship, Sour Sweet decided to be honest. Unknowing of how Twilight would react, she knew it was a gamble, but it would be a gamble worth taking. “Twilight. I know this sounds really bad, but we were only trying to make sure you had a good time.”

“Look, I’m not upset with any of you. I had a good time surfing was. What I can’t believe is that all of you are being like this over me. Sunset said you were all reasonable,” Twilight said.

“We are!” the Shadowbolts all responded at once.

“Easy for you to say,” Juniper rolled her eyes.

“Here’s the truth,” Lemon Zest began explaining, “We’re not really complete friends with the Rainbooms. We kind of...well...We’re not enemies, but we keep each other at arm’s length.”

Twilight looked seriously at the Shadowbolts. She had known them for only a short time, but would never have guessed that they were on unfriendly terms with Sunsets friends. On the other hand, she thought she could understand the situation. She learned that the two different schools were always against each other from Sunset. Then, an idea occurred to her. She didn’t know much about Crystal Prep, but had a good idea of who was in charge there.

“Shadowbolts, I want to go to your school,” Twilight said.

“What!?” The Shadowbolts all said at once again.

“But, I thought you were going to hang out with us?” Juniper said.

“Juniper, Wallflower: I’m really sorry. But, this is really important. I promise that I’ll put my full attention on you two later,” Twilight told the other girls.

“But Twilight,” Juniper protested. She was about to walk up to Twilight, but was stopped by Wallflower.

“She told us that she has the whole day to stay. Just relax.” Wallflower said, trying to calm her down.

As much as Juniper wanted to talk to Princess Twilight, she knew Wallflower was right. Juniper silently agreed, as she and Wallflower went back into the water.

“You really want to go to Crystal Prep?” Sunny asked.

“Yes, because I wanted to know if all of your other friends are guilty for what happen in the Friendship Games. I know that you were nice enough to me, but your school sounds so dysfunctional,” Twilight said.

“Our school isn’t messed up,” Sour said. “And I swear, when we get there, nothing bad is going to happen.” She raised her hand out for a handshake.

Twilight shook her hand willingly.

Seeing the gesture, the others were relieved they had a second chance to make a good impression.

“You can hang in my car,” Lemon Zest suggested.

“Okay.” Twilight responded, entering the car, and riding off to Crystal Prep.

The Shadowbolts and Twilight drove into the parking lot of Crystal Prep. Today, students and teachers came to the school so they can get ready for the next year. Crystal Prep was always ahead when it comes to the next school year.

Once Lemon Zest took her keys out of the ignition, Twilight departed the car after Lemon had the music on her speakers too loud.

“Finally!” Twilight moaned. “I’m sorry, Lemon, but do you really need the music that loud?”

“Aww come on, I love music.” Lemon cheered, as she got out of her car.

“I like music too. But, I don’t like loud music.”

“Sorry. Our friend is extreme with music,” Sour Sweet explained from behind.

“So, here we are: Crystal Prep,” Indigo introduced Twilight to the school.

Twilight could see that it was what the Crystal Empire was to Canterlot. It was not as grand as Camp Everfree, but it looked better than Canterlot High to her.

“This school looks promising,” Twilight commented.

“You really think so? On the way to Canterlot we use coach busses, instead of those cheap yellow things,” Sunny said.

“What’s so special about that?”

“We get to watch movies in there,” Sugarcoat said.

“I see,” Twilight answered.

“Hey I would love to have so many conversations but you really need to get back to the beach as quickly as possible,” Sunny said, as she hustled Twilight inside the front gate.

Once they were inside the front door Twilight was met with an unusual sight. The hallways were empty, and all the students nowhere to be seen.

“Where is everyone?” Twilight said.

“They’re all in the cafeteria, signing up for their classes for next year,” Sour Sweet explained. “But, before we go there, we should give you a very long tour in the school.” She wrapped her arm around Twilight as she and her friends started the grand tour.

The tour took around twenty five minutes. They went to the gym, all the major classrooms, the chorus room and even some of the offices. Lucky for them all the teachers went to the auditorium to convene for next year’s plans.

Twilight found the school quite in line with the familiar kingdom. With every wall and ceiling she saw, it reminded her the times she went to the Crystal Empire with the houses made out of crystal. Soon they made it to the dome area.

“Girls, I have to say: this school looks better than I thought,” Twilight commented.

“You really think so?” Lemon Zest said.

“Yeah. And here’s secret,” Twilight said.

Twilight motioned for all the other girls to come closer to her. Once they were all huddled up, she let loose the secret.

“Where I live, this place is actually the Crystal Empire,” Twilight said.

All the girls were confused.

“The Crystal Empire?” Indigo tilted her head.

“It’s a place where my brother and Princess Cadence are the rulers of the land,” Twilight explained.

There was the shocked reaction Twilight was looking for. Everybody liked Dean Cadence far more than the last dean. But, they never held her up to the pedestal of royalty.

“Your telling me that Dean Cadance, the vice principal in this school is actually a princess and ruler in your world!?” Sour squealed in excitement, leaning closer to Twilight.

“Yes! And my brother is her husband! The prince of the land!” Twilight said.

It was such exciting news for them all. In another world, their beloved faculty was royalty.

“What’s it like there? In the Crystal Empire,” Sunny asked.

“Okay, so th Crystal Empire is a great place to live in,” Twilight said. “Princess Cadance and Shining Armor have a baby, my niece, named Flurry Heart. She’s really cute.”

“Maybe, if it’s possible, we can go to your world and go to the Crystal Empire...Unless there’s a pony Cinch there,” Lemon said.

“Who’s Cinch?” Twilight wondered.

“She’s the principal of this school. And she was the one who caused all the problems in the Friendship Games,” Sugarcoat said.

“And was that the reason why your Twilight got corrupted by magic?”

“Yes. But we kind of blamed her for her interests in the magic at Canterlot High. Long story, but we should get back to Cinch,” Sour explained. “She convinced us to use magic against the Wondercolts, but that didn’t turn out too well. Our point is she’s really aggressive when it comes to the games.”

“Wow, I really feel sorry for you girls,” Twilight replied with her face fallen. “Just to get this out of the way: there is no pony Cinch in the Crystal Empire. So, maybe in the future I’ll take all of you there.”

“Thanks,” Sour Sweet responded. “How about we go to the cafeteria to meet more friends. Then we’ll go back to the beach.”

“Okay let’s go then,” Twilight agreed. In her mind, she was tallying up who she had met.

…. I got nine friends today and I think I’m going to make twenty. Must be a record.”

When they all get into the cafeteria, it was far quieter than the one at Canterlot High. There were only a few people talking to each other while the others were signing up for next year’s classes.

“This cafeteria is peaceful,” Twilight commented, impressed.

“We always have peaceful rooms in this school,” Sour said.

They sat by the table close to the door.

“I would give you something to eat, but this is only for assignments today,” Indigo said, patting her hand on Twilight’s back.

“It’s fine. I mean, maybe if all of you are hungry we can get pizza,” Twilight offered.

“Yeah, pizza is the best thing to have for a friend. Fist pump!” Indigo put her fist out for Twilight, but Twilight didn’t put her fist out. “Oh, you don’t know? I’ll teach you.”

“Indigo, you can fist pump her later,” Sour Sweet argued. “I’m going to get some other friends of mine so they can get to know you.”

Sour left the table and went to talk to Suri Polomare, Trenderhoof and Neon Lights to sit at their table. They found it hard to believe that the Twilight they saw was different than the one they knew. With no glasses and no ponytail, they simply thought that Canterlot High really changed her. They took their seat at the Shadowbolts table as they give the Princess a closer look at her which made Twilight feel uncomfortable.

“Since when did you stop wearing glasses?” Trenderhoof asked.

“And what happen to your ponytail? You usually wear one every day,” Neon Lights added.

“But on the plus side, you look better then before,” Suri Polomare commented.

Twilight was nervous, but at the same time knew she needed to be friendly.

“How about we talk about that later, because I can tell you all the things that happened when I was gone.”

She smiled, but the downside she never knew what her friends did this whole time. Sunset Shimmer only told her the events, which made it hard for Twilight to explain. They only thing she could think of were some parts of Camp Everfree thanks to Timber, while they were driving together.

“Camp Everfree,” Twilight said.

“Camp Everfree? More like camp Boringfree,” Neon Lights rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, you're telling me you went to a camp and not a real field trip?” Trenderhoof retorted.

“No, I’m serious. It’s a beautiful place. And we threw a party at the Crystal Cave,” Twilight said.

“Your serious about the Crystal Cave part?” Suri wondered.

“Yes. In the inside there's geodes and they’re really beautiful.”

“Beautiful! I love beautiful!” Suri got off her chair and hugged Twilight, surprising the princess.

“I thought you were all so serious here,” Twilight said.

“Well ever since we saw you turned into a demon at the games, we changed a little.” Suri said, still hugging Twilight. “I learn….that magic is a bad thing.”

“Suri, magic is not a bad thing,” Twilight replied as she tried to pull Suri off of herself.

“No! After you almost destroyed everything, I’m never going to touch it in my life!”

Sour and the others rolled their eyes after watching Suri’s new behavior.

“What she means is that some of us changed from it,” Sunny recalled.

“Just because magic almost destroyed the games, magic is a big no-no here,” Lemon said.

“But, magic is how I learn,” Twilight said.

Everyone at the table gasped, and turned to Twilight. They all leaned closer to her with buckets of questions they want to ask.

“Is it safe?”

“Is it great for emergencies?”

“Is that the reason why you don’t wear glasses anymore?”

Twilight felt as if she had made the biggest mistake possible.

“Ummmm… I think I need to use the bathroom,” she said, as she slowly got up and made her way out of the cafeteria.

“No problem. We have a lot of questions for you,” Trenderhoof smirked.

The Shadowbolts were a collective bundle of nerves. If they didn’t know this wasn’t the same Twilight as before, they may know now.

“Sunset is never going to talk to us again,” Lemon whispered to Sour.

Sour only nodded in response.

Twilight didn’t go to the bathroom. She ran as far away from the cafeteria as she could, before she drank from the nearest bubbler to calm herself down. But no matter how she tried, the nerves got worse.

“No, no! NO!” Twilight said to herself. “They will talk to me. And I have to protect my world.”

She began pacing in circles to think of a way to fix this problem.

“Okay, so three girls know that I have magic, but they don’t understand that I’m not their Twilight. I wanted to be nice, but I have to do the right thing.”

For all her thinking she found it harder to come up with an idea.

“I think I need a walk.”

Once she turned around, she made her way to the left of the hallway but she ran into Principal Cinch, who was getting her papers. Once Cinch got her eyes on Twilight, she remembered her.

“So, we meet again,” Cinch replied calmly.

Twilight didn’t know what to say. She didn’t want to risk revealing anymore than she had, so she stalled.

“Yeah….. Ummmm….”

“I see that you changed since you got transferred to Canterlot High,” Cinch said, steadying her glasses.

“Yeah, you don't know what girls do in Canter-”

“I don’t want to know,” Chinch interrupted her. “Why are you here?”

“Well, I wanted to meet some old students I miss here. So, I came here for a visit...”

This didn’t convince Cinch at all.

“You never made any friends here before. Why visit now?” Cinch retorted. “Give me a reason why you’re here.”

“Okay. Sour Sweet and her friends drove me here,” Twilight explained.

Cinch didn’t respond at all. She was surprised that her toughest students took her back to the school she used to go to.

“Interesting,” Cinch said, with an unsettling calm.

“What do you mean?” Twilight wondered.

“I want you to come with me.”

“Oh no!”

Cinch took the visiting princess to Twilight’s old room.

“I want you to feel comfortable here. Because. I’m going to get your brother Shining Armor to come for a meeting,” Cinch said.

“What meeting are you talking about?” Twilight asked as Cinch led Twilight inside the room.

“Let’s just say it’s an intervention. An intervention where you could be back here for next year.” Twilight was shocked to her core, as Cinch pushed her inside. “But don’t worry, everything will be back to normal by tonight.”

“To...Ton…. TONIGHT!!!?”

Cinch locked the door, trapping Twilight inside the room.

Twilight was in complete silence. With no hope at all, Twilight sat down on her chair with her head hitting the desk.

“I should’ve stayed in Equestria,” she said.