New Moon (My Little Pony)

28 The Bloom of Lazuli (5/7)

Well, after what happened at the greenhouse, word of it got out to the school officials. I guess a ransacked field can't go ignored.

The officials met together and came to the conclusion that I should be reprimanded for my actions. The punishment was that I had to temporarily join the gardening club and help Bud grow back all the plants she lost before I could have the freedom to leave.

Not only that, but the officials decided that it was best that a pony with a nasty behavior such as myself should be suspended for the team. That pretty much meant that I was dropped for the entire season.

My father was livid after hearing what happened to me. He had stopped waking me each morning and even stopped speaking to me. It was like I was a ghost to him like I didn't matter to him anymore.

And at school, ponies distanced themselves from me. Some were scared that I might get violent with them. Others didn't want to associate with an ex-ace that was dishonorably dropped from the team.

In a span of two days, my entire world crumbled. I lost my popularity, my honor, and respect from dad. Everything I had worked to build for him was gone and now he had little care for me. I was a failure.

That realization broke me. I felt all my dreams were impossible now. I couldn't find any point to continue on. What was even the point of existing if my dad won't acknowledge me?

Days and months went by as I worked as the quiet helper of Loving Bud. She tried to talk to me every now and then, but I didn't care. I didn't care for anything anymore. Not if my dad doesn't care for me. I was just a broken shell that Bud could marionette as she pleased. It seemed like the only thing I was good for now.

It was only when the night of prom arrived when my world had changed again.

Every year I would always get asked by pretty colts to go to the prom with them. Obviously, I declined them, and it also happened to boost my popularity as some unattainable mare that stallions wished to have. This year though, no pony came to me.

I was sickened how my old entourage didn't bother to want me around as they spoke excitedly for their dates. Goes to show what fake friends they were. No, that's not fair. I was using them as much as they were using me.

I was planning to stay in for the night, but then I got a letter in my locker room about an invitation. It was from Loving Bud.

I wanted to rip that letter, but then I had to consider the fact that she was the only pony that acknowledged my existence now. We were pretty much the same now. A bunch of outcasts.

I didn't want to feel alone, so I went along with her to prom. The event was to take place at the auditorium, but Bud chose to lead me elsewhere. Instead, we sat together at the greenhouse that night. The full moon shone upon the field that the two of us worked to grow those past months.

She talked to me. She shared moments about her mundane time at the daycare center her mother ran and stories about her time at Ponyville with her two sisters.

I just listened to her. I never could understand why she was trying so hard to befriend me. A pony that made her cry and showed nothing but contempt. But she made me feel less lonely, and so I clung to that.

Through her stories, she finally came to the reason why she brought me to the greenhouse.

...Hey Leaf, have you ever heard her sing before?... Yeah, I figured as much. She has a beautiful voice, but she's always so nervous to share it with other ponies.

But she felt that she needed to share it with me. She voiced how lonely I looked at those past months and how I appeared to have given up in myself. So, she hoped a song would somehow raise my spirit.

At first, I didn't care. I was just her quiet listener, plainly open to anything she was willing to share with me. But when she sang, I felt a strong beat in my heart. That lovely voice of hers that was directed only towards me sparked those old emotions from that moment months ago. Those I couldn't understand.

But when I looked at her and heard her, I became reminded of my mother. She was always so attentive to me, open to all of my wants and assuring to all of my sadness. She was like an angel that made me feel safe and belonged. That's what Bud made me feel.

And that's when I realized that I wanted to stay with her. This sense of security she gave me was something that I didn't want to lose. I needed to hold on to it.

That's when I realized I was in love with her.