Cadance thought. Luna watched her from across the table, arms folded over the single page that could change her life forever. And for the better.

The diner hadn’t changed in nearly five years. Oh, the cushions were more faded than they had been, and the tabletops more scarred from the countless plates and silverware passing over them. But it was a comfortable place. It was closer to CHS than to Crystal Prep, too. She could eat lunch here, if she wanted.

But at what cost?

She sighed, drumming her fingers over her wrist. She could marry Shining Armor, and there would be no claims of favoritism. She could watch her new sister-in-law grow up and make friends as she never had before. She could be happy working for her aunts, following her degree as a counselor and not need to be a strict disciplinarian.

She could leave the students of Crystal Prep to deal with Principal Abacus Cinch on their own.

“You know I, we, are making the offer because we care.” Luna reached across the table to lay a cool hand on Cadance’s. “There’s nothing tying you down, now, is there?”

“The students,” Cadance said. It was all she needed to say, but she continued, “You saw them. They’re not bad kids. They’re...”

“They would make good students at CHS.”

“But they won't go. Not yet, and if I left them now, they wouldn’t have a moderating influence. They wouldn’t be able to see that there is a kinder side to the world. They would be cold, Luna.”

“Cadance, they are old enough to know right from wrong. I am worried about you. You sided with us. What is she, what are they, going to think of you? Will they listen?”

Luna’s hand squeezed lightly over hers, and Cadance turned her hand over to hold it.

Luna had a point. Cinch had already put her in the bad spotlight. The students who had been there still sided with her, but those who hadn’t, the majority, were pushing against them, and hard. How long before they gave into peer pressure?

Not long.

Sugarcoat was the only one unswayed by that, bless her heart.

“I can’t say you’re wrong. But what choice do I have? If I don’t stay and at least try to moderate her, I’m afraid they’ll all turn out like her, and not even think it’s wrong.” She squeezed her aunt’s hand again, clasped her other over top of it, and shook her head. “I couldn’t live with myself if my leaving meant they all turned out to be little copies of Abacus Cinch.”

Luna drew her hand back and slid the paper back into a well-worn manilla envelope. “I knew you would say as much.”

“And I knew you would make the offer again.”

Luna’s smile brightened. “It is because we love you, Cadance. We want to see you happy.” She frowned, then, and slid the envelope across the table. “Keep it. The offer was always open, and always will be. Maybe you can find a use for it. A... threat.”

Cadance snorted. “Abacus does not value me so highly as that.” She slid the envelope back across the table. “Even having that might be enough for her to bring action against me. She could fire me at any moment she chooses, and the school board wouldn’t bat an eye.”

“She has that much clout?” Luna did not reach for the envelope.

“Because she gets results. Which is all the school board cares about these days. She might lose that clout if she were to have a school rise to rival her successes.”

Luna touched a finger to one edge of the envelope, and inched it across the table again. “Come work with us. Help us do that. Crystal Prep can’t keep the students there against their will, and if they see that CHS is a more likeable place...”

“How long would it take? Two years? Four? More? How many students would Abacus Cinch sway? How many cold-hearted children will she make out of loving families? Lemon Zest is... used to be such a sweet girl. A little off, but now she flits back and forth, and I worry that her mind is damaged. How many more?”

Luna drew the envelope back. “I had to try.”

“I know. And, someday, I'll accept.”

"Sooner than later, I hope. We both love you, Cadance."

Lunch arrived, then, and Cadance listened, smiling, as Luna told her about Twilight's first day.