It had been a month since she transferred from Princess Celestia’s School for the Gifted to Princess Twilight’s School for Friendship, and Luster Dawn had found the transition much easier than she expected. Sure, she rarely had a moment alone and some of the other students were more dumbfounded about things that were commonplace, well, at least what was commonplace in her old school, yet she felt relief. And we join her during her private session with the guidance counselor, Trixie Lulamoon. After she took her seat, “So how do these sessions work, Consular Lulamoon?” Luster asked.
Trixie barely fought a giggle, “It's The Grrreat and Powerrrful Trixie!” she declared as she got up from her chair and stood on her desk, casting her cloak open with too much dramatic flair. “But it's been my experience that for students to open up just 'Trixie' usually works,” she said as she stepped off her desk and tried to feign modesty. Luster only smiled and fought back a giggle, Trixie was almost point-for-point how Princess Twilight described her. Once Trixie was back in her seat, she cleared her throat in an attempt to regain control. “As to your question, Trixie has found it best to be as forthright and forthcoming about how you are performing as possible while trying to be constructive and supportive. A diamond may be forever a girl's best friend, but it needs to be cut out of the rough to have value.” Trixie smiled at her comment. As she noticed that Luster only blinked twice, the headmistress sighed, “As for your end of this conversation, this is a place where you can voice your feelings, observations, and all that. So let's start with you, how are feeling since you transferred?”
Luster couldn't and didn't even try to stop herself from smiling, “I never thought that so many people could be so open to reach out a hand.” She quickly panicked, “Not that no one in my old school was unhelpful, but it was more...” Luster paused as she tried to find the right word.
“Of an 'I need you at your best for this struggle to mean anything' type competition and less of a collaboration?” Trixie asked, displaying a greater amount of understanding than Luster believed the counselor was capable of giving, considering what she recalled from her talks with Twilight.
Luster nodded, more so out of the shock of how deep Trixie could be and wanting to not offend her. After a second she then spoke, “I also feel like there's a weight that I didn't know I had was taken from me.”
“Impostor syndrome.” Trixie said with an understanding smile, Trixie then got up and walked to the window, “The Grrreat and Powerrrful Trrrixie never experienced it, but I do know that a lot of people, from the average Earthborn Mystican to the mightiest of dragons get the feeling that they are not as good as others see that they are. If I may take a guess...” Trixie paused and allowed Luster to speak.
Luster rubbed her left upper arm, “Yeah, my dad is Field Marshal Flash Sentry, you know Princess Twilight’s husband, and my mother is Sunset Shimmer. I never could shake the feeling that Princess Twilight asked me to be her protege out of... well nepotism.”
Trixie couldn't help but have a snotty chuckle. After she cleared her throat to collect herself, “You'll find that a lot of things run on nepotism to one degree or another despite all the best efforts to make it as merit-based as possible. That's one of the reasons why the three founding members of the CMC are teachers here.” Trixie informed. “It's also why I'm the guidance counselor. But enough about that, is there anything else you have on your mind or you want to bring up?” Trixie asked. Luster shook her head. “Well you're doing well in your classes and the teachers are impressed with your participation. Right now, there's not much else. So you can leave, but as you go could you tell the next student to come in?” She asked.
“Sure,” Luster said as she got up, “Same time next month?” she asked. Trixie nodded. Luster then exited the office and looked around, but there wasn't another student outside. Or at least so she thought. However, there was a boy... no, a young man at least a year older than her. She could have sworn she had seen him before. His skin was mostly dark gray with patches, strips, and blots of pale apple green, his hair was short and seemed to be smoke-like and was a vivid orange in color with a couple of yellow streaks. His left eye was a brilliant raspberry with the pupil of any other humanoid and his right was red and with a vertical cat-like pupil. As shocking as his appearance was, his attire was far from what she expected. He wore no shirt, only a series of leather straps and rings. Over that was an open, black sleeveless trench coat. Around his neck was a leather collar with a red gem in the front. On his hands, he wore short-fingered leather gloves often used by certain bards and the riders of the fairly recently invented motorized bicycles. Farther 'south' he wore black leather riding chaps with a silvery metal codpiece connected to the two sides, which Luster hoped cover a set of briefs. The piece itself looked like a snake with its head out. The eyes of the serpent were two orange gems. Luster's face took on several shades of red as the blood rushed to her checks. She wanted to look away, but for some reason, she was transfixed.
“Like what you see?” the young man asked, snapping Luster out of her gaze and she looked to face him. Before she could respond, he reached under her chin with his right hand. He smiled with what seemed to be a wicked grin as he showed that his canines were fangs. “Because I sure do,” he said before he leaned down towards her as he lifted her chin towards him and placed a kiss on her lips. Luster was mortified. However, just as swiftly as he took the kiss, he pulled back and released his hold. He licked his lips and then smacked his lips a couple of times.“Cherry,” he mused aloud.
Before Luster knew what she did, the sound of the back of her left hand smacking the youth's left cheek echoed in the hall. The youth blinked twice before he opened his mouth and moved his jaw around. After ten seconds of that, he spoke. “You got a wicked backhand,” he said before he finally rubbed his cheek with his left hand, as an impressed smile formed on his lips. “I'd tip my hat if I had one. Most girls would use the palm of the right hand,” he said as he took the index and middle fingers of his right hand and tapped his forehead before twisting his hand as if he used the two fingers to grab the brim of a hat and was tipping it to her.
Luster was confused, he sounded like he was... complimenting her. Now was not the time for this. She had to tell the next student that Trixie was ready to see them. She shook her head, “Listen, perv, you can't go around stealing a girl's first kiss.” she stated. This seemed to shock him as he blinked thrice. “Besides you shouldn't be dressed like that. This is a school. You've probably scared off the student that was waiting here. I am going to report this to...” She started as she turned around to the door to Trixie's office. She was about to grab the knob when the young man reached around her and grabbed it instead, twisted it open, and shoved it open with so much force it slammed into the wall.
“Yo, GC.” he said as he walked around Luster, “So I am now after the new girl?” he asked as he pointed his right thumb towards Luster as he walked to the chair that Luster sat not that long.
Trixie's smile was strained and forced. “Fortegrimme, I am so glad you made it.” she then turned to Luster, “Luster Dawn, thank you for seeing Fortegrimme in, you can go about the rest of your day.” Trixie was uncomfortable, as her big toothy smile revealed. However, Luster knew it was because she was present and this was a front to not violate how an educator can react to a student when there is an uninvolved third party with no vested interest present.
“Good day, Consular.” Luster was barely able to squeak as she shut the door. She leaned against the door, not because she wanted to hear anything, but to catch her breath. This 'Fortegrimme' was a student? With that get up? She had never seen him in any of her classes. And he certainly would have left an impression if she saw him before. But he referred to her as the 'new girl' and he spoke so casually... No, there was nothing casual about saying 'Yo' to any educator, even a guidance counselor, and to call Trixie 'GC' that was blatantly disrespectful. She shook her head. “He's a delinquent, I should keep my...” she started but stopped. This was Princess Twilight’s School for Friendship. She couldn't just shut someone out so immediately. No, she had to at least reach out to him and try to be friendly towards him. But she couldn't help but sigh. “I need to clear my head,” she said.
About an hour later, Luster was lying on the grass outside of the school itself. Her eyes were shut, she wasn't asleep, just basking in the light of the midday sun. “I am more of a moon and star person.” came the voice of the youth she had met earlier. Luster jumped to her feet and looked around to see him in the nearby tree, seated on one of the largest and lowest boughs and leaning against the trunk, covered in the shadow the rest of the tree offered. His trench coat was off and was lying across his lap. While he seemed he was willing to hide his codpiece, he was not about to abide by the spirit that lay at the heart of whatever request he was given. He was looking into the canopy of the tree he was in. “But if it's the sun you like, have at it.”
“If you're trying to apologize, you're not off to a very good start,” Luster called him out.
He snorted with a chuckle, “That's just it, I ain't apologizing.” He said as he turned his face and looked at her, “I thought being honest was elementary for friendship.” he retorted. He then smirked impishly, showing his fangs, “And I like the idea that I am the first guy other than your daddy to kiss you. You've got a kissable face.”
Luster could tell that if he got an emotional response from her, it would only fuel him, be it positive or negative. So, she let her face go plain and expressionless. “I bet you say that to all the girls, lech,” she said blankly with no emotions as if she was reading an equation for a research paper.
Fortegrimme leaned up, turned to have his full front towards her, and blinked thrice at Luster. After the third blink he leaned back slightly, “DDDaaammmnnn!” he exclaimed. “And I thought I had fangs.” He whistled. Luster had not heard that many whistles in her life, but she could tell that Fortegrimme's one was out of nervousness. “I might have to go to the infirmary and pick up some aloe vera.”
Normally when people said stuff like that they meant it sarcastically and/or sardonically. Luster, however, could tell that Fortegrimme's motives were different. He couldn't deny that she struck him and struck him hard, but he was trying to sound like it wasn't as severe as it was. Yet Luster was done with this conversation, at least as things stood. “Look, this my free day, and unless you're gonna say 'I'm sorry’. I would rather not deal with you until classes tomorrow.” She said and turned around and walked to the school not once looking back, not even a glance over her shoulder. Had she, she would have seen Fortegrimme's jaw hanging open.
