Chapter Two is beginning! And what do you know? It's about school!

The halls of the School of Friendship were bustling with activity, as the various students scrambled to reach their assigned classrooms before the bell rang. (Wait, do they even have a bell there? Ah, forget it. They do now). This semester was supposed to be a promising one with new students from across the world transferring there, so they could learn the values of Friendship just as the ponies did themselves.

Zach could already hear what his father thought about the whole thing. A nice thought, but ultimately repetitive and unnecessary in his eyes.

"Back where I come from, friendship isn't something you learn in a school; it's something you're taught by your parents, and that you experience through the people in your life. Besides, a school environment isn't exactly the most positive type to be teaching such life lessons in."

And yet, the School remained, and TD had yet to take it down. Probably because even he couldn't deny the good it had done, but also because he knew this was Twilight's dream to fulfill, and he wasn't about to come between her and it. In fact, now that Zach thought about it, that was also probably the reason why he had allowed Twilight to enlist Zach there. It hadn't been a bad choice overall, per say, but it was still a little awkward for Zach at times, considering that the teachers of said school consisted of his mother and several friends of the family, including Pinkie Pie. Not to mention, it wasn't any secret that he himself was the daughter of the Princess of Friendship, and thus he was often unable to avoid the popularity which came with that.

At least it was mostly positive popularity, and Zach had done his best to be modest on the topic, which had helped in causing it to die down significantly. But even so, there was never a time when he wouldn't notice the way that some of the younger ponies would approach him in conversation, or the way some would pretend not to be staring at him in awe. Guess it just came with the package of being the son of two famous parents - scratch that. One famous parent and one infamous parent.

The pegasus colt stopped just before he'd pass the door to his classroom, and he felt a slight smile creep up his face seeing it before he stepped inside. Inside, he was surprised to see that there were currently only a few other students inside, but he knew that would change very quickly. He found a desk near the center of the room - he never knew why, but he always liked being in the center - and sat himself down along with his supplies, then looked around to see if any of those present were familiar to him.

One familiar face slowly crept into the classroom, trying desperately not to draw attention to herself and making sure to scam her surroundings like a hawk.

With each step, Sugar Plum looked all around herself, as though she was paranoid she was being followed. Sugar Plum dove behind a row of desks and slunk across the floor. Her head sprouting up like a periscope from behind the desk that stood next to the one Zach had laid claim to, scanning her surroundings once more before climbing into her chair.

"The heat's off for now," She murmured. "That's good... that's good. Now how long is the question." She was starting to talk like she just galloped out of a gangster flic. Thankfully, no one who was already there paid attention to her mumblings.

Unless you counted the pegasus right beside her.

"Sugar Plum?" Zach asked in a whisper, frowning in slight concern. "What's the matter? You look like you've just been spending the last hour trying to stay out of sight of someone."

"That's because I have been," She replied, eyes darting around the room. "Keep your eyes peeled. She could be anywhere."

"She? Who are you running from? Is it a bully?" Zach inquired further.

"No. This is a whole other mess of trouble." She began before turning to face him. "It's my mother."

...

"You're kidding, right?" Zach raised an eyebrow. "Why from your mom?"

"She's been on top of me ever since I got here," Sugar Plum droned.

Earlier:

"Alright, Dad's gotta saunter off to work now. Have a great first day hon, I'll be home a little after you and Momma, alright?" Chuck reassured Sugar Plum before giving her a big hug, and leaving the school grounds on the way to his bar.

Sugar Plum looked around at the bustling grounds of the school eagerly, ready to put her best hoof forward and meet some new friends. Just as she noticed a group of fillies about her age and began to trot over, a blur of pink fur and an outrageously puffy pink mane swept her up.

"Sugar Plum! So happy to see you! Is my big girl ready for her first day of school?" Pinkie Pie asked cheerfully, her loud voice picking up the ears of many surrounding attendees, who exchanged snickers at the display.

"You know it, Momma," Sugar Plum replied confidently as Pinkie set her down.

"Alright, well, you don't need me around cramping your style," Pinkie said with a short of laughter. "Momma'll see you around Sugar Plum!" She called as she hopped away, once more earning the snicker of any who happened to observe.

This would quickly move from minor instances to great annoyance, as Sugar Plum began to notice she couldn't go anywhere, or approach anypony else without noticing Pinkie, eyes glued to her. She'd be in the bushes near groups Sugar Plum was trying to initiate herself into, she'd intervene and steer her away from anypony or anything that she deemed to be "bad news," even eyed her as she walked across the school grounds while waving - it was all growing rather frustrating. As soon as the bell to go inside rang, Sugar Plum darted down the halls to her first class.

Present:

"That about brings you up to speed," she concluded. "But, I don't have to worry about that now. Now I can just focus on school. Momma's out of sight, and out of mind."

Just then, who should burst through the door but Sugar Plum and Zach's teacher for that moment,

Pinkie Pie.

Zach immediately winced. "Maybe a little too soon to celebrate," he sympathized.

"Oh no..." Sugar Plum buried her head in her hooves. "Just don't do anything to get her attention." She murmured.

"Hey Sugar Plum!" Pinkie suddenly called, waving to her daughter who in turn was burrowing her head into her backpack, and pleading for an asteroid to strike all life from the planet.

"Hi momma." Sugar Plum murmured meekly from within her backpack.

Seeing that there was no point trying to lay low, Zach simply said politely, "Hello, Aunt Pinkie Pie."

"Well hi Zach!" Pinkie waved, turning her head to face him with a chicken-like cock of the neck. "Zach, would you mind asking Sugar Plum to take her head out of her backpack so she doesn't smother?" She called to him. "I'd do it myself but I'm trying to keep it lowkey with Sugar Plum."

An adult equine has 205 bones, and not one of Pinkie's are self aware.

Zach hesitated for a moment or two, before sighing and saying quietly, "Sugar Plum, please take your head out of the backpack so you don't smother yourself." The emphasis in his voice acting like a subtle apology uttered in the same breath.

"I heard her," Sugar Plum grumbled with a heavy sigh, as she pulled her head out of her bag.

"That's better, look at that pretty face!" Pinkie remarked. "Now, let's everypony else get to your seats and we can get started!" She addressed the rest of the class, who had been enthralled by the embarrassing situation Sugar Plum found herself in. Various students exchanged jokes to each other about what had just transpired.

"I knew I should have signed up for PE. Doing laps for Aunt Dashie can't be half this bad," Sugar Plum bemoaned quietly.

Zach said nothing, but he did pass her a small glance of sympathy, before focusing his attention towards the front of the class. After all, they were still in a class, and embarrassing as it was for Sugar Plum, they still had to pay attention and be at their best.

At lunch, everyone was eager to spend the hour of free time out on the fields that made up the school's exteriors, where they would play games or relax in the sun and soak up some rays. It was honestly one of the best parts about the way things were run, and no other school for miles quite had it the same way.

However, for Zach, that sense of relaxation was disturbed by his concerned sympathy for Sugar Plum, whom he knew wouldn't be enjoying the outdoors anymore than he would either. Even if it wasn't directed at him, Pinkie Pie's constant smothering was giving him some uncomfortable vibes. It reminded him of when TD and Twilight had first tried raising him up at such a young age - granted, he was barely only 3 at the time, and they had no reason to believe that he was more mature mentally than he was physically. But as short an episode as that had been, it was not something he'd wish upon even his worst enemy (if he had any).

Seeing essentially a repeat done for Sugar Plum was painful to watch, and even more painful to see happening in real-time.

"You know what?" Sugar Plum spoke up, eyes facing straight ahead. "I'm just going to keep looking forward the rest of the day. Not turning my head when somepony calls my name. Just... eyes front. Rest of the day. Blinders on." She sighed. "Not letting her bother me anymore."

"That's... not a bad idea, I suppose," Zach shrugged, levitating his lunch box over to him with a glow of his wings. "No use moping about it all day, anyways." He opened the box, but then stopped and gave a quick glance around him, then back to her. "Um... maybe I should eat this in a more secluded environment..."

"There's nowhere we're gonna go that's private. Just eat your strangely intoxicating smelling lunch and pretend nopony else is here like I'm doing," Sugar Plum replied with a sigh. "Seriously, what is that?" She asked. "It smells fantastic."

"Um... well, it looks like... a ham sandwich, with cheddar cheese, extra mayo, and a nice helping of lettuce," the pegasus answered. "Which means Dad made it; Mom wouldn't touch a single piece of meat to save her life."

"Sounds good," Sugar Plum replied. "Dad talks a lot about meat. He makes it sound really good but... someone doesn't want me eating it."

Stated someone being not 10 yards away.

"Well, in fairness, you're a full-blown pony. And ponies are herbivores by nature. Meanwhile, I'm half-human at best, and so my diet is different from yours," Zach remarked, levitating his sandwich out then. "Still, I can understand how that may be frustrating."

"One time, over the summer, my dad let me try a hotdog from a reserve he had," Sugar Plum said, sort of trying to brag. "He said it was okay cause there's 'nothing you can trace them back to', so that's... that's something."

"Wait, you've actually had a hotdog before?" Zach blinked a few times.

"Well, a bite," she admitted. "A... bite I had to spit out," she admitted further.

"That's still impressive," Zach noted with a smile. "I can't even get Gold Pile to so much as smell a piece of bacon before he hurls." A chuckle escaped him. "Although it did get a good laugh out of me."

"Did you ever hear about the time... someone took one of my dad's frozen meat pizzas for a garden luncheon Fluttershy was having." Sugar Plum giggled. "Dad told me about that... it happened a few months after they met."

"That story isn't funny!" Pinkie called from up in the tree the two were sitting under.

"Ignoring her," Sugar Plum murmured.

"I... think Mom brought it up once," Zach mused. "And she didn't sound amused, but Dad thought it was funny as hay."

"Dad said that Fluttershy wouldn't talk to him for weeks after that," Sugar Plum said with a giggle.

"I can guess why," he said, giggling as well.

"She was very upset," Pinkie spoke up. "Princess Celestia was at that luncheon! That was her first impression of your father. She could have sent him back home like that! How funny do you think that is?"

"You wanna like... move somewhere else?" Sugar Plum turned to Zach.

Zach pretended to think about it for a second, but the answer was obvious before he said anything.

"Sure, I'm down for that."

Sugar Plum got up and nudged her head toward a spot with a willow tree and a small pond. "But you know what'd help us get away? A good distraction. Where are we gonna find one of those?" She pondered. As she pondered, she heard a familiar voice singing to himself on the street nearest to the school just a few yards away.

"I am on my lunch break, just walking down the street," Sugar Plum's dad, Chuck, hummed to himself. "Gonna go to the diner for some chilli fries... or something."

"If we can get his attention, he'll distract momzilla and we can sneak off," She suggested.

The pegasus pondered the situation for a moment, then grinned deviously as a dollar bill on a string materialized on the ground near Chuck, operated by an invisible hand.

"Oldest trick in the book," he said to Sugar Plum. "And it works more than half the time. Now we just see if he'll take the bait..."

"Someone doesn't think very highly of me," Chuck grumbled at the sight of the dollar. "An earth American dollar on what appears to be... gee what's that, twine? Come on. At least the pros use fishing line." He scoffed. "But then... a dollars a dollar."

He shrugged as he pounced at the dollar. But the dollar bill jerked just out of reach when he pounced, before making an enticing wiggle in place as if someone was trying to lure him in further.

Meanwhile, Zach gently ushered Sugar Plum along with a wing, saying, "Now's our chance. Better make like bananas and split."

"C'mere you," Chuck growled as he chased the dollar into the yard of the school, where he saw Pinkie climbing out of the tree, watching Sugar Plum and Zach run away. "Pinks?" He called, immediately getting her attention.

"Chuckie!" She called excitedly, speeding off to him.

"Perfect. That'll keep her busy for a while," Sugar Plum noted from afar. Zach nodded approvingly, and they both set off at a brisk trot towards their new location. Once under the willow tree, he looked left and right, then sat down under the shade.

"I think we're officially safe now," he said confidently.

"For now." Sugar Plum sighed as she flopped down onto the ground. "You can empathize with me, your mom is at least... somewhat close to my mom's level of crazy, right?" She asked, looking up at the tree and a bird in a nest within.

"Well, I wouldn't call her crazy," Zach chuckled. "But Mom definitely can be a little too... protective, at times. And she's on the extreme side when it comes to organization - sometimes, even just having a single book on the floor will send her into a frenzy organizing and reorganizing the bookshelves."

"Well, protective is one thing. But today my moms about as nutty as an Oh Henry," Sugar Plum repeated an expression she had heard her father use. "Whatever that is," She added with a sigh. "I mean, look, look up there." She pointed to the bird's nest. "That mother bird must be so scared about all the danger in the world that may be out there for her babies, but..." She stopped as the chicks in the nest finished her elaboration by leaping from the nest, and taking to their first flight. "Did the mother bird go hysterical and chase after them? No. She stayed put in the nest. She doesn't insist on following them everywhere, watching their every movements."

Zach nodded in understanding. "I know what you mean. But mothers will always worry. In their eyes, you are more precious than anything else in the world. For Pinkie, you're her baby girl. And she wants only the best for you..." He glanced out at the pond. "That being said, I feel like there should be a limit to how far they take that worrying into action..."

"And for the record, you agree that my mon has gone way past that limit, right?" She turned to him.

"I guess so," he conceded. "All I know is I wouldn't want to be in your shoes right now."

"No, I can't imagine you would. I know I don't want to be in them," she replied with a little chuckle.

"There was nothing to talk about until today!" She exclaimed. "She just started acting like this."

"Acting like what?" Pinkie suddenly asked from about 20 feet away; clearly, the distraction had gone on his way.

"Goddamn it," Zach muttered, and facepalmed - or is it facehoofed? "I should've known it wouldn't last long..."

This was Sugar Plums point where she boiled over. The fur along her back raised as she winced, trying not to burst, a battle she was quickly losing.

The pegasus sighed, and stood to his feet. "Alright, I'll go see if I can't distract her for a bit, while you-" He stopped as he felt a tingling sensation go over him, which he had long since realized meant something was about to happen. And turning around, he saw Sugar Plum on the verge of bursting, and it... honestly scared him. "Uh... Sugar Plum?"

"Like what?" Sugar Plum asked. "Like what?" She turned as she stood up. "Insane! Zany! Koo-koo!" She barked. "Bananas! Meshugenah! Absolutely CRAZY!" Sugar Plum hollered. "You have been acting completely crazy all day, and you are helping absolutely nopony acting like that! Certainly not me! I, despite you, have been completely fine all day. I don't know why you think somethings going to happen to me if you aren't watching me constantly. I got by pretty okay for five years after all, I think I could go a day just fine!" She lashed out before galloping away, fed up with all of this nonsense.

...

...

...

"...wow... Remind me never to get her that mad at me," Zach said aloud after a good minute of silence had passed.

Pinkie wasn't totally sure what to say. That was... a lot. All at once. Some of those words she didn't even think her daughter knew, meshugenah? What in Celestia was that? All Pinkie knew right now was that she was hurting, and hurting bad.

Zach braced for what was sure to be quite the display of emotion. He made sure he was still close to the willow tree, need he duck behind it for cover, as everywhere in a 20 foot radius of Pinkie was the splash zone.

But that's not what happened.

Pinkie looked in the direction her daughter ran off in, and hung her head. Her knees wobbled a second before she lay down, burying her head in her hooves and sobbing to herself. Too sad to even make a scene, this was no ordinary sadness.

"...um, Aunt Pinkie Pie?" Zach asked with slight wariness, peering out from behind the tree. When all he was answered with was more sobs, he slowly walked out from behind cover, and began to approach her. He wasn't sure what to say or do, but he did know Pinkie Pie needed the comfort. Almost as much as she had needed to hear what Sugar Plum had said, harsh as it was.

"Oh.. hi Zach." Pinkie said between sniffs, her head coming out from her hooves. "She's pretty upset. You'd probably better follow her." She rubbed her eye as she suppressed more tears.

"Well..." Zach rubbed the back of his head. "I could, but I don't think it'll help much..." He looked a little awkwardly to the side. "I mean... I'm not the one she's mad at..."

"You're the one she'd want to see though. She doesn't want anything to do with me," Pinkie replied sadly. "I don't know what to do. I'm horrible at this."

"No you're not!" Zach protested. "You're a good mother, Aunt Pinkie. But even good mothers make mistakes." He was now close to her, and he gently placed a hoof as high up on her foreleg as he could go. "Please don't beat yourself up over this."

"Okay," She nodded, perking up slightly. "I... guess I'd better go see where she ran off to." She stood to her hooves again, before murmuring, "Before she hightails it to Canterlot again."

Zach smiled slightly, then his face scrunched up for a moment as he thought of something. Then he said, "You know, I think I might know where she's at..."

Beneath the bleachers, by a ball field on the school's grounds was where Sugar Plum took refuge after her meltdown. By this point, her wrath had exhausted itself into tears; she was remorseful for the things she said to her mother, she feared talking to her again after that, and she especially feared for her father's reaction when he'd learn what she had done. However, she was at least satisfied she finally asserted herself.

She just wished she could relish in that, instead of the overwhelming array of worries and regret that swarmed her mind.

"Sugar Plum?"

The voice of the very one whom she had tried to escape from was heard, just a short distance away, accompanied by hoofsteps that occasionally stopped in place. No longer was Pinkie's tone so "crazy" as it had been all day today, nor was there any cheeriness to be heard in it. Instead, she sounded sad. Remorseful. Ashamed, even. And her hoofsteps seemed to reflect that, with slow and heavy steps that seemed to drag themselves along across the ground.

"Sugar Plum?" she called again. "It's... me... I know you're probably very mad, but please don't hide. I just... want to talk. Pinkie Promise."

Sugar Plum peered from under the bleachers, she could see her mother looking around for her. She was taken aback when she noticed Pinkie's demeanor, she assumed her mother was going to be upset with her, or angry with her. But neither of those seemed true. Cautiously, she stepped to her hooves and trotted out from under the bleachers.

"Hi..." Sugar Plum said in a low voice, she herself also quite sad in tone. Pinkie managed to smile sadly at the sight of Sugar Plum, but she didn't approach her just yet, and stayed a short distance away.

The party pony's disguise was completely gone, revealing the Changeling beneath as if to show she wanted to be completely transparent. The black chitin contrasted against her pink mane - the only part of her to have not changed - and the holes in her leg made the mismatched hooves look a little large on her. But the pupil-less eyes were still ones Sugar Plum could recognize any day, and they were no less filled with the love that Pinkie Pie always had to share.

"Hi... Zach told me you might be here," she said, rubbing the back of her head for a moment. "And I know I'm the last pony you want to see right now, but..." She paused, and made a heavy sigh. "I couldn't just leave you like this... I have to make this right, for both of us."

"I..." Sugar Plum began, before hanging her head with a heavy sigh. "I shouldn't have yelled at you. I'm really sorry," she said weakly, too preoccupied combating her emotions to look her mother in the eye.

"No, I'm the one who should be sorry," Pinkie Pie stated, taking a single step closer. "After you ran away from home, I was scared of what might happen to you. And when we got you back, I was happier than I've ever been to find anypony." A brief smile crossed her face, but soon faded. "But... I was also afraid that if you had ran away before, then that meant that I wasn't being a good mother. And I feared that if I couldn't be better for you, then you might want to run away again."

She turned her head to the side in shame, then continued, "I see now that I was only making it worst for you. I pushed you too far, like I did with Maud and Starlight when I found out they were becoming friends. But... it won't happen again... I'm really sorry." She finally turned to look at Sugar Plum, and her eyes filled with tears as she asked with sincerity, "Can you ever forgive me?"

"You are a good mother." Sugar Plum looked to her, and a small smile formed on her face. "You're the best. The only momma I'd ever ask for. You only pushed because you cared, because you love me. Of course I forgive you momma." She trotted over to her mother and hugged her.

Pinkie Pie's front hooves wrapped around Sugar Plum, and she hugged her little filly tightly as the tears began to flow. Her wings made a light buzzing of joy, and additionally the Changeling felt the surge of love her daughter shared with her course through her, adding to the significance of it all.

"I love you, Sugar Plum," she said quietly, eyes closing slowly as she let them both experience the moment.

"I love you too, momma." Sugar Plum replied, nuzzling into her mother.

The Second day of school. A most important 'take two' for those who may not have landed a solid first impression on day one. One such individual looking for her second chance was Sugar Plum. The moment she and her dad approached the entry to the schoolyard, Sugar Plum was off like a light to find Zach, eager to see her friend that morning. As she ran, however, she abruptly heard a voice right behind her calling, "SUGAR PLUM, WAAAAAAAIIIIT!"

"Oh no..." Sugar Plum sighed, screeching to a halt at the sound of the wail behind her. So much for a fresh start. And sure enough, coming to a halt just barely a foot away was Pinkie Pie, as expected. However, in one of her hooves, she was holding something out to her.

"You forgot your lunchbox," she said with a small smile.

In the moment, Sugar Plum was admittedly surprised. It wasn't that she meant to assume the worst in her mother after their talk the day before, but she'd seen her tend to their neighbor's fern even after they came back from vacation until they had to take the spare key they had given her back, so she knew how strong her overbearing nature could be. But no, alas, the egg was on Sugar Plum's face at this time. "Thank you, mama," she said with a smile, as she took her lunchbox from Pinkie.

"You're welcome," Pinkie Pie replied, but she didn't leave immediately, and instead looked ready to say something else at first. But after a few seconds, all she said was, "Have fun at school, okay?"

"I will mama," Sugar Plum nodded. "Thank you," She said before turning to go find Zach once more, but before running off, she turned her head and called, "I'll see you in class!"

"See you then!" Pinkie Pie called back, and added once she was out of earshot, "That's my girl." Sugar Plum didn't have much longer to run before the green and blue striped pegasus was in sight, and he beamed a big smile as he saw her approach. "So, I take it that things went well between you two?" he asked, already guessing the answer before she had said a word.

"Yep!" Sugar Plum nodded happily. "Thank Celestia, I don't know how I'd ever do a whole year of yesterday."

"Well, moms will be moms, but the beauty of it is that they can still learn from their mistakes," Zach said, smiling a little more before glancing to the school doors. "Don't know why, but today just feels like everything is going to go our way."

"Here's hoping!" Sugar Plum nodded, optimistic as she stepped toward the school alongside him.

Well, I liked it. XD

Sorry for the late post, everypony! At least y'all now know I'm still alive, and not giving up. Next time we visit these two, it's going to be over a more family-oriented problem. Until then, stay awesome and stay tuned!