Tuesday, June 7, 2016

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Today's Horoscope (Virgo): You can never know what's inside someone's heart if you refuse to look them in the eye.

Early Morning

The Music Club is having its end-of-year party after school today.

After School

After school, I head to the Music Club room for the party. Most of the club got there ahead of me; there are only a handful of stragglers missing.

Shortly after I arrive, Vinyl and Octavia walk up to me. They both have sad, wistful smiles. Vinyl is holding her yearbook. Octavia whispers to Vinyl, and she grins. "Hey, Flash-man! Got a sec?"

"Sure," I say. "What's up?"

"Wantcha to sign my yearbook," Vinyl says. "Not that I can read whatever you write, but it's the thought, yeah? An' Tavi can read it to me."

"Sure," I say. I frown. "Seriously, though? I mean, most people wait until senior year to start collecting signatures..."

"Yeah, well..." Vinyl sighs. "I won't be here next year. The last few months...they haven't been easy." She shakes her head. "I'm finishin' high school from home. Special courses for the blind."

"I...didn't know," I say.

Vinyl shrugs. "I decided last week," she says. "Been talkin' it over with Mom for the last month or so. It just...it makes more sense, y'know?"

"She's still going to walk with us at graduation next year," Octavia says. "It's just, she'll be taking all her courses at home, with special tutors to help her." She must see something on my face that would upset or annoy Vinyl, because she scowls and says, "Now, don't go giving us that look. Yes, it would be nice if Vinyl could complete her final year here with all her friends, but that simply isn't the hand she was dealt."

"Yeah, so...I wanna end my time here on a happy note," Vinyl says. She grins. "Besides, I'll still be spinnin' for parties an' dances an' shit. You ain't seen the last of this DJ."

I smile. "You'd better keep in touch," I say. I take her yearbook and sign it, drawing my shield emblem under my signature, then hand it back.

"Cool, thanks," Vinyl says. "C'mon, Tavi, we gotta get the swingers to sign."

Octavia groans and rolls her eyes. "Stop calling them that," she chides as they walk off toward where Lyra and Bon Bon are.

...I'm not even gonna ask. I grab a cup of punch and make my way around the room, stopping to chat with the other members of the club I haven't seen in a while. I spot Trixie doing a few simple magic tricks in the center of the room, and make my way over to her. "Hey, I know a magic trick," I say.

Trixie looks up at me. "Oh?"

"Sure." I grin. "I can swallow a quarter, then a few hours later I can pull it out of my—"

Trixie whaps me upside the head with her wand and a dove flies out of my mouth. Everyone laughs and claps.

I cough and swallow a huge gulp of punch to clear my throat. "Still gonna be working at the pizza place over the summer?" I ask.

Trixie shrugs. "It depends on the girls. I'm sure we'll probably all be going on vacation somewhere at some point. Not necessarily together, mind. We do have our own friends and families." She tilts her head. "How about you?"

"Well, the whole dorm's going to Canterlittle this weekend," I say. "Later on this month, we're going up to Sweet Apple Acres to work on the farm."

"I heard Sunset Shimmer moved into your dorm," Trixie says sourly.

"Yeah." I sigh. "It's...distracting."

"Why, because she's got a bigger rack than your girlfriend?" a guy I've never really liked asks teasingly. Trixie shoots him an unamused glare.

"No, because she's the bitch queen of the universe," I say. "It'll be a miracle if everyone makes it through the summer without somebody getting maimed."

"Ouch," the same guy says. "Catfights. That must be the sucky part of livin' with all those hot girls." He frowns. "Well, that and PMS—"

A smoke bomb bursts in his mouth, and he runs for the punch bowl.

"THANK you," I say to Trixie.

Trixie smirks. "Consider it my privelege and duty as a woman."

Everyone's having a good time with friends they may not see again until fall...or, in some cases, may never see again...

It's almost five when the party winds down. I say goodbye to everyone who's still there and head back to the dorm.

Evening

When I return to the dorm, I find Applejack and Apple Bloom standing around outside talking. They see me and wave me over.

"What's up?" I ask.

Applejack bites her lip. "Flash...Ah'm startin' t' think us all goin' up t' th' farm's a powerful bad idea."

I sigh. "Because of Sunset Shimmer?"

"Well...yeah," Applejack says.

"That skanky bag o' twat rot ain't got no business settin' foot on our family farm," Apple Bloom says vehemently.

"Apple Bloom!" Applejack snaps. "Mind yer language! Why, if Big Mac heard you goin' on like that, he'd—"

"Oh, shut up," Apple Bloom says, crossing her arms. "You were thinkin' worse things t' call 'er than that an' you know it."

"Well...that's true," Applejack admits. "But still—"

"Girls," I say. "Look...we're not changing our summer plans just because of Sunset Shimmer. This is what she wants. She's screwing with our heads. She wants to ruin our summer. Are we gonna let her do that?"

"Well..."

I look at Apple Bloom. "Weren't you looking forward to having all your friends out at the farm? I heard you mention Silver Spoon is even coming out. And weren't you looking forward to mending fences with Scootaloo?"

"Yeah," Apple Bloom says slowly. "We were gonna have a lotta fun fixin' up that ol' treehouse..."

"And you wanna give all that up just because of bacon bitch?"

Apple Bloom scratches her head. "Well...no, not really..."

"There's no reason to change any of our plans," I say firmly. "And yes, I don't like the idea of Sunset being on the Apple Farm. In fact, I'm pretty sure Big Mac and Granny Smith are gonna shit bricks when they find out. But we just have to deal with it."

Applejack sighs. "Yeah...you're right."

"And dealing with it means we don't let her spoil it for the rest of us." I shove my hands in my pockets and sigh. "Besides...something about the way she's been acting since she got here is bothering me. I..." I frown. "I don't know what's going on with her. And we need to keep her close so I can figure it out."

"You mean so we can figure it out, right?" Applejack says.

I shake my head. "I think...this is something I have to figure out on my own." I try to smile reassuringly. "Dealing with the Shadows and...and anything that happens in Zodiac...that's for all of us to worry about. Figuring out what Sunset's really up to...it's best if I take care of that myself."

"You sure about that?" Applejack asks dubiously.

"No," I say, shaking my head. "But I do know that..." I pause, trying to think of how to explain it. "I know that right now, I'm the only one who can be calm enough to deal with her."

Applejack raises an eyebrow. "Calm. You."

I shrug.

Applejack sighs. "Fine. We'll do it your way. But..." She puts a hand on my shoulder. "You know, it's like you been tellin' me all this time. It ain't healthy, tryin' t' put everything on yourself like this."

She and Apple Bloom head inside. After a moment, I follow.

After dinner, Sunset Shimmer offers to help me do the dishes. "You know, I've been thinking," she says. "We're a lot alike. Two sides of the same coin."

I frown at her. "I don't think so."

"But we are," Sunset says. She picks at a stuck-on bit of food. "I get my power from exploiting everyone's darkest secrets. I create fear and distrust. I break apart relationships. You...you're the opposite. You make friends, you bring people together. You take the same dark secrets and deep fears I exploit and..." She shrugs. "You help your friends face them. And that seems to be what makes you strong." She looks up at me. "You have so many friends...I've never even had one." She laughs. "I've only ever cared about myself, of course. I've never wanted friends. I don't want all that baggage." She wipes down a plate. "Still..."

There's an odd, thoughtful look on her face.

"You came here with nothing," she says after she puts the plate in the drainer. "Now, you have so much..." She wrings out her dishrag. "So much to protect...and so much to lose.

"I wonder...is your power worth the pain you'll go through if you lose everything you care about?"

I don't have an answer for that, so I don't say anything. Sunset falls silent. Once we finish washing the dishes, she goes back to her room. I hang out in the lounge with Twilight, Pinkie, and Rainbow for a little while before bed.