“Sunset Shimmer, please report to the principal’s office. Sunset Shimmer to the principal’s office.”
Sunset groaned. The bell had just rung for her lunch period to start. She was looking forward to getting her school lunch, sitting and eating alone. The five girls who had helped Princess Twilight defeat her less than a week ago had tried to eat with her, but Sunset had asked, pleaded really, to have her lunch alone. It had been her time to plot and scheme, though now she just wanted a chance to think. That and she simply wasn’t ready to face them yet.
Instead, she turned left at the doors to the cafeteria, heading towards Principal Celestia’s office. This wasn’t her first time being called in, and though the students let her past, there was no small amount of snickering as they did. She rolled her eyes as she fought the tide of students. In no time at all, much less than she would have wished, she was standing outside the principal’s office.
With a groan, she pushed to door open and entered. “Heya Sunset,” Silver Ink said without looking up. The principal’s secretary and Sunset had spent quite a lot of time talking while Sunset waited for the principal.
“Hey Ms. Ink,” Sunset replied, collapsing into a chair. Helping repair the damage she had caused was exhausting, but she wasn’t going to complain. The construction company the school had hired was doing most of the work; she, Snips and Snails were mostly their gophers. “Did she tell you why I’m here this time?”
Silver looked up, raising an eyebrow. “You usually know why you’re called in, Sunset,” came her reply.
“Ya, back when I was queen mega bitch,” Sunset quipped, a distinct venom in her voice. “I know my reputation is against me, but I’m trying to be better now.”
Silver shrugged. She opened her mouth to retort but was interrupted by shouting from within. “I don’t care, Tia! This is my job, my responsibility. Let me do my damn job!” interspersed by what was clearly a fist pounding on wood. A few seconds later vice principal Luna stormed out. “Come with me, Sunset. You’ll be meeting with me, not my sister.”
Sunset hadn’t formed many attachments since she arrived at CHS. She certainly wouldn’t call the vice principal her friend; Most in the school agreed that Luna was far stricter than Celestia. Yet, just the name Celestia held too much baggage for Sunset. It was with a sigh of relief that she got up and quickly followed the younger sister out the door.
Luna was clearly fuming as she stormed towards her office. Sunset knew well enough to leave it alone. Luna all but kicked her door open before stomping to her desk. Once she was seated, and Sunset had closed the door behind them, she took a deep breath and visibly calmed. “I would like to apologize for my behavior, Sunset,” Luna began.
Sunset sat in the open chair, across the desk from the vice-principal. Rather than reply, she settled for a small smile. Her curiosity got the better of her, though, and she blurted out “What’s going on?”
Luna let out a slow sigh. “I would first like to reassure you; there is no punishment being handed out today. I want to talk with you.” Confusion spread across the teen’s face. “Celestia and I have been torn on how to deal with you these last few years. On the one hand, you’ve been quite the problem student. Despite what most teenagers seem to think, we are fully aware of everything going on at the school. We have certainly compiled a long list against you. However, we also know what your living situation is.”
Sunset felt her heart miss a beat. Biting her tongue, she was able to keep her outward response to a minimum.
“We know that if we brought in the authorities on you, which we have ample evidence to do, it would likely turn out far worse for you. In light of recent revelations from Princess Twilight, we recognize that it would have likely been far worse than we had thought.” Luna leaned forward, resting her head in her hands, and her elbows on her desk. “As such, we’ve done our best to correct you up until now, to no avail. We have been quite stuck on how to handle you.
“However, we are both heartened to see your improvement since the Fall Formal.” For the first time, Sunset saw a small smile cross it’s way onto Luna’s lips. Reaching over, Luna pressed a button on her desk. “Sherry? Would you order chinese for myself and Miss. Shimmer? I’ll have my usual, and I believe Miss Shimmer would appreciate something vegetarian.”
Sunset raised an eyebrow, baffled. “Vice-Principal Luna, what are you doing? You don’t need to order me food.” There was a moment's pause as everything the older woman had said processed before, “And what makes you think I’m vegetarian?” It wasn’t a secret, per-se, but it also wasn’t something she went around advertising.
Leaning back, Luna pulled a small remote out of her pocket. With a few clicks, the lights in the room dimmed and a few candles lit up, filling the room with a soft, flickering, calming glow. “The same way we know Fluttershy is,” Luna chuckled. “The cafeteria staff keeps note of those kinds of things. You must have noticed that your free lunch is always vegetarian.”
Sunset bit her lip. She hadn’t actually paid enough attention to notice. “But why are you ordering me something? Can’t I go eat in the cafeteria with everyone else?”
Shaking her head, Luna let a gentle smile onto her lips again. “I’m afraid you and I are going to be having a long talk. One which is going to take both your lunch and your free period.”
“What?” Sunset was incredulous. She hadn’t been planning on anything during her free two hours, but she certainly didn’t want it taken from her.
“Sunset we’re-” Luna paused and pursed her lips. “You know, it just occurred to me that you likely don’t know the full range of my duties.” Chuckling, Luna flipped the lights back on, pulled a small card from a stack on her desk and handed it to Sunset. “I’m not just the Vice-Principal, Sunset. I am also the school counselor.” That warm smile returned to her face, larger than before. “I help any of my students who need it.”
Busy looking at the card, Sunset didn’t look up. The card did indeed list Luna as both Vice-Principal and Counselor, with her work number and email below that. It also listed her MS in psychology from a school Sunset hadn’t heard of, although the acronym, SPGCU, was suspiciously like her old school’s. “What does a counselor do, exactly?” she whispered, making to return the card. It wasn’t a term she was familiar with.
Luna declined the card. “Keep it, in case you need to call me. As I’m sure you know, there are many illnesses of the body.”
“Ya, we spent a month on them in bio,” Sunset replied softly.
Smiling, Luna continued. “Well, there are also illnesses of the mind. Unlike those of the body though, these are much harder to treat. A cold is treated with simple medication. Depression, on the other hand, takes much more.” Sitting forward, Luna placed a hand on Sunset’s shoulder, causing the young girl to look up. “I’m here to help you Sunset,” she said quietly. “I’m here to make sure that you get back on your feet. I know exactly where you’re at. I can’t say I’ve been there myself, but I’ve been somewhere close.”
The smile that filled Luna’s face was one Sunset knew well. She had seen it on the princess countless times; it was a smile of love, understanding, forgiveness. There was a time when Sunset would have hated to see it. Now, she couldn’t help but let a few tears slide down her cheek.
“You’ve got problems Sunset,” Luna whispered. “That’s okay. It’s more than okay, even. You can try to face them on your own, but I am here to help. I want to help you, Sunset.” Tears were pouring down the teenagers face now. The princess had a few times tried to help her, but only succeeded in making Sunset angrier. Luna, in a few sentences though, had slipped through the walls she had built up over the years.
“There’s a little story I’m fond of, Sunset,” Luna added. “A woman is walking along when she falls down into a hole. The walls are so steep she can't climb out. Looking up, she sees a doctor walking by. ‘Hey! Can you help me?’ she shouts. The doctor writes a prescription and tosses it down the hole. Next a priest walks by. ‘Father,’ the woman says. ‘I’m down in this hole with no way out. Can you help me?’ The priest writes out a prayer and drops it into the hole before walking away. Then, a friend walks by. ‘Hey Silver!’ the woman cries. ‘Please, I need some help.’ Looking down, the friend jumps down in the hole with the woman. ‘Why did you jump down?’ the woman asks. ‘Now we’re both down here.’ ‘Ya,’ responds the friend. ‘But I’ve been down this hole before. I know the way out.”
Luna stood and moved to the other side of her desk. Gently, she tugged Sunset into a standing position and wrapped her arms around her. “You need friends, Sunset. You need someone who can show you the way out of the hole.” Stepping back, that same kind smile graced her face. Sunset was shaking, the tears flowing freely despite her sniffled attempts to stop them. “Will you let me help you?”
Sunset bit her lip. There was a part of her that wanted to start bawling. To let out all her pain, share it with this woman who somehow understood what she was feeling. Fear stopped her. Fear of being rejected again. Fear of being tossed aside. “Why didn’t you help me sooner?” she sobbed out. The elements had shown her just how horrible she had been, and she hated the woman she had become. There was a nagging doubt in her mind, telling her that Luna didn’t care. That she was only pretending, like all those before. That if she had cared, if she had noticed, she would have done something sooner, stopped her from becoming the monster she became. She hid behind that doubt, using it to shield her from the pain and fear. It had become too easy for her to hide behind anger.
The smile of Luna’s face turned sour and she looked away. “A month ago, if I had come to you and offered you friendship and a helping hand, would you have accepted?” The tone of Luna’s voice betrayed her own pain. Sunset hiccoughed, knowing they both knew the answer. “What about a year ago? Two?” Luna smiled and returned her hand to Sunset’s shoulder. “I’ve wanted to help you, Sunset. But I could see in your eyes a fire, much like the one my sister gets sometimes. You wouldn’t have taken my help. If I had forced you to talk with me, you would have rebelled harder, gotten worse. I wish I had met you sooner. I’d like to think I could have stopped you from going down the path you did. But I’m here now.”
Sunset looked up at the counselor. Her eyes watered with the remnants of the tears she had cried; she had finally cried her last. There was a mixture of pain, fear, and sorrow in her eyes. Closing her eyes, she bit her lip, trying to find the words. “Okay,” she managed to eek out. “I want your help. I don’t want to be her again.”
Luna pulled her into a hug, which Sunset quickly returned. Pulling away, Luna was about to speak when there was a knock at the door. “Luna? Lunch is here.” A tired voice called through the door.
In a flash Luna was at the door. She thanked Sherry for the lunch before returning to Sunset. “I’ve got some more comfortable chairs over here,” she said, pointing towards two beanbags. “I’m sure we have a lot to talk about today.” Setting the bag of food on her desk, she quickly pulled out the meal for Sunset.
Taking the food, Sunset sank into a bag, almost curling up on herself. “Okay,” came her muttered reply.
An hour and a half later, Sunset left the counselor’s office. There was a small, genuine smile on her lips as she made her way to her next class. It had been good to talk. It had been good to say those things. She had also, with some encouragement from Luna, changed her mind. Yesterday she had wanted nothing to do with those five girls. She just wanted them to leave her alone. Princess Twilight had shown her the power of friendship, in a very literal way. It had left Sunset feeling worse than ever, and not at all worthy of it. Luna had reminded her that it wasn’t a matter of worth, but rather one of choice. She didn’t have to be worthy of friendship, she only had to accept it when offered.
Author's Note
If you're struggling, going through rough times, or exhausted from life's pain, it is always okay to ask for help. Never feel that you have to be strong enough to handle it yourself. Don't worry that asking for help makes you look weak.
I've dealt with serious depression most of my adult life. I wouldn't be here now if I hadn't gotten help. There are always those who will gladly give you a hand. Take it.
Go here
Or here
to find help near you.
Also the story is from West Wing, S2E10.
