Work Text:
Twilight walked up the stairs to the principal’s office in Crystal Prep. Why was she doing this? Cadence had told her that she would be to meet Principal Cinch; and Twilight almost shuddered in disgust at the mention of it. However, she nodded without uttering a word of protest, and somehow miraculously made it to the office in the absence of other students whispering in secrecy about her.Yes, she was the most prominent and brightest student of Crystal Prep, and Cinch’s personal protégé; Cinch’s words, not hers. But Twilight actually buried a deep dislike for the egotistic head of school, and she liked to avoid the principal as much as she could. The older woman was much too proper and wordy for her, and gave Twilight a headache. Her respect for the main person running the school? It was there, and it was there faint. Putting up with the principal gave her several permissions, and it was best to take advantage of the situation.
Opening the door to the office, she looked to her right and saw Cadence. The long-haired maiden gave her a reassuring smile, and Twilight walked over to the desk. Hiding her discomfort, she sat down at a seat and tried to see Cadence one last time if she could get out of this. Instead, she was greeted with a door closed, and saw...her brother?
“Shining Armor? My brother? Why is he here?”
As an alumni, Principal Cinch thought he could provide some unique perspective.”, explained Cadence.
“Perspective? Perspective on what?”
“Why the Melbourne Games, of course.”
The sinister, yet professional tone of Cinch’s almost made her flinch backwards. Twilight didn’t see the Principal already in the room, and inwardly she cursed at herself for not thinking beforehand that the head wouldn’t be late for her own meeting. Her cold, light-colored eyes shifted towards Shining Armor behind her.
“You competed in the Games, did you not, Shining Armor?”, questioned Cinch.
Shining Armor quickly looked away from Cadence and she could see a faint tint of pink on his face. He cleared his throat.
“I did.”
“Did you happen to recall who won?”
She’s testing me again. How annoying, Twilight thought.
“Haha, Crystal Prep did. We always win.”
“We always win.”
Here we go…
Principal Cinch got up from her desk, and started to walk towards the trophies that was lined up neatly against her wall.
“Twilight. I’ll be honest. It doesn’t matter if Crystal Prep wins or loses. It’s about what we found last week with our main competitor, Canterlot High.”
Or..not?
“Is that why you asked to see me?”
“Precisely.”
Walking back to her desk, she pulled up a lone file with no more than a page. Cinch slid the file to her, and Twilight opened the cover.
“As you can see, Canterlot High has always been at the bottom of the barrel. However, recently things have gotten better,” she pointed to a percentage sheet. “Such as the percentage of students who are graduated, the percentage of grades, and even athletics has gone up by a mile.”
Twilight squinted her eyes. If there was one thing she cared about more than her studies, it was competition. And with the coming up of the Melbourne Games…
“I believe you’ve already put together the pieces?”
Looking up at the cold principal, she looked at her in the eyes.
“You want me to participate in the Melbourne Games?”
“Oh Twilight, don’t be so modest. That’s obvious. There is a reason why I wanted you to see this.”
Cinch spoke in a high and mighty voice, like she was above everything. Instant distaste of the head came back.
“I’m going to give it to you bluntly. I’m specifically tasking you to find out what’s going on in Canterlot High. Celestia and Luna cannot hide their tasks for long, and Crystal Prep must always stay on top.”
So she wants me to find out the sudden rise of success in Canterlot High and also use it for Crystal Prep?
“...I see. I’m in.”
Stealing the secret of their success and beating them down in the Games.. this’ll be a breeze.
“I won’t let you down, Principal Cinch.”
Bowing my head to the principal is just a small nuisance in my path.
“I know you won’t, my talented protégé. And don’t forget, the Games isn’t about friendship either, like how Canterlot High wanted to name it.”
Twilight got up and walked towards the door, smiling egotistically.
“Don’t worry, I’m not interested in friends anyway.”
And never call me 'my talented protégé' again.
“Good. Keep it like that.”
And with the last sentence, Twilight opened the door to the hallways, already thinking about the victory of Crystal Prep.