Accident tied her burglar’s mask up behind her head, wiggling her flanks just a little as she crept up on Bellboy once more. Slipping her hoof into his saddlebag for just a moment, Accident pulled out his coinpurse without disturbing more than one or two little bells.

“Ooops, sorry mister!” She squeaked innocently, trotting around in front of him and pawing the ground. “I didn’t see you there! I’ll be super careful next time, I promise!”

“That’s a new tactic,” said Sky, raising her eyebrow as she watched.

“Yahuh! I’ll watch where I’m going next time, mister! See ya!” Accident squeaked, trotting off with a little wave.

“Okay, I’ll admit that that was pretty good,” Sky giggled, “but don’t just go saying sorry to everypony you bump into, otherwise you could get in some pretty serious trouble. Got it?”

“Yes, Mi...I mean, er...sis.” Accident smiled, giving her wings a little flutter. “But I’m doing well so far, right?”

“You’re learning...pretty damn fast, actually,” Sky said with a frown, “you’re sure as hell getting the hang of this faster than I did.”

“Do you think I’ll be a great big burglar like you someday?” Accident asked hopefully, unfurling her wings and staring up at Sky with those big shining green eyes.

“Well, I’m sure you wi…wait a minute,” Sky paused, narrowing her eyes at the young filly, “who are you calling ‘big,’ huh? Was that a comment about my weight?”

Accident rocked back and forth on her hooves, refusing to look Sky in the eye. “Well, I mean, you’re a pretty big pony,” she said diplomatically. “I bet you ate a lot of cookies to get as big as that!”

“Oh, I see how it is!” Sky huffed, turning her back on the filly. “This is about my great big flanks, isn’t it?”

“Yep!” Accident nodded, happy that Sky was quick on the uptake. “They’re enormous! I bet I couldn’t even fit both of my forelegs around them!”

Sky huffed even more grumpily, sauntering off and sitting down at the edge of the courtyard. “Oh, yeah, sure! Tease the pony about her great big ass! You know, nopony ever comments about the rest of me! Nopony ever says “Sky, you should eat something! You’re only skin and bone! No, it’s always gotta be about my great big butt!”

Accident cocked her head, frowning. “Wait, did I say something wrong?”

“No...no, it’s nothing…” Sky said, trailing off and looking away.

Were Accident a little older and wiser, she’d have picked up on Sky’s teen angst. As it was, this little filly was far too young to comprehend how silly Sky could sometimes be. All she knew was one prevailing truth; Sky was sad and she couldn’t allow that sadness to continue. With a little squeak, Accident shuffled over to her big sister, plonking down next to her and tucking her head under the elder pony’s downy wing.

“Wanna know what I think?” Accident asked.

“Sure,” Sky sighed, “what do you think?”

“I think you’re the prettiest pony ever.” Accident whispered.

“Yeah? Even with my messed-up wings and bed mane?” Sky scoffed.

“Yep!” Accident beamed. “It’s part of what makes you such a lovely pony! It’s what makes you...well...you!”

“And being me is a good thing?”

“Well…” Accident frowned, “back when I read a whole lot of books at my mum’s place, I kinda started thinking...what if life is like a great big story and you’re writing yours right now?”

“Sure doesn’t feel like it.” Sky grumbled. “Shadow...you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and the second I find you I run into Stronghooves again. I’ll bet he’s the guy who’s killing off all of the burglars, too.”

“Well, that’s what I mean,” Accident continued, “if you’ve got the power to write your own story, would you ever let somepony else write it for you?”

Sky stared at Bellboy for a long time, deep in thought.

“N...no.” She said. “Nopony can write my story better than I can...though I could sure as hell use a co-author.” She added, giving Accident a wink.

“Ooooh! Pick me! Pick me!” Accident squealed, bouncing up and down on the spot.

“Hmmm…” Sky said slowly, looking around the courtyard as if it was packed with potential candidates, “I dunno...I’m gonna need a volunteer…”

“Sky! Sky! Pick me! Baby sister, right here!” Accident chirped, sticking her hoof up like an eager little student.

“It’s gotta be somepony super special…” Sky continued.

“Me! Meeeeee!”

“Somepony who’d make a great partner in crime…”

“Me! Me me me! I’d make a great partner, and I’m housebroken!”

“How about…” Sky tapped a hoof to her chin, pausing for dramatic effect.

Accident shivered as she held her hoof in the air, biting her lip out of desperation.

“Bellboy!” Sky beamed.

The filly flopped down into the dirt, hiding her head in her hooves. “Awww, I was so sure I was the one!”

Sky pranced over to her mannequin, picking him up and taking flight to stow him back in the attic. Once he was all squared away, the little white mare floated down to the ground next to her young sister, nudging her with a hoof.

“Shadow…” she said quietly, giving her cheek a nuzzle, “why would I ever choose anyone else? You’re my number one pony!”

“I...I am?” Accident asked, peeking out from behind her hooves.

“Damn right. You’re a sweet little pony and the best thing that’s ever happened to me! I’d love to have you as my co-author!” Sky crooned, wrapping her forelegs around Accident’s midsection and lifting her back onto her hooves.

Accident said nothing for the longest time, staring up at Sky as if trying to work her out. Finally, she wrapped her forelegs around Sky’s and rubbed her cheek against the mare’s chest fluff. “Tha...thank you, sis…” She whispered.

“No problem, sweetie.” Sky smiled, hugging her back. “I know that you wanna hold onto your old name, but for what it’s worth, finding you was the happiest accident ever.”

“Yeah...about that…” Accident said softly, “I...kinda don’t want that name anymore. Can you just...call me Shadow?”

“You’ve finally warmed up to the name, huh?”

“Yeah.” Shadow nodded. “I’ve been thinking about it, and Mum was actually being really mean when she gave me that name. Besides...nopony can ever leave their shadow behind, can they?”

“I know I’d never want to.” Sky whispered. “My Shadow’s the sweetest little pony in the whole wide world.”

With that, Sky hoisted Shadow into her saddlebag, beaming at the young pony. Shadow held onto the rim of the bag by her little blue hooves.

“So...sis…” Shadow asked, “what are we gonna do about Stronghooves?”

Sky tapped a hoof to her chin, frowning.

“We’re gonna need firepower.” She said, finally. “C’mon, I think I know just who to talk to.”

“Must be nice not to be scared of Sawblades anymore, huh?” Sky smiled as the two sisters trotted down the tunnel once more.

“I dunno, he looked pretty scary when he was giving you that evil stare!” Accident countered, bouncing up and down in her sister’s saddlebag.

“Yeah, well, how about this time you don’t rat me out if I nick his sweets?”

“No deal.”

“I’ll cut you a deal; fifty percent if you don’t tell.”

“Eighty.”

“Sixty.”

“Three hundred.”

“Three hu...wait, what?” Sky froze, staring at the filly.

“Was that wrong?” Shadow asked. “I’m not good at numbers…”

“Er...well...just say fifty and I’ll give you half of the lollipops when we get home.” Sky sighed.

“Oh, okay! I thought we were just listing off random numbers!” Shadow giggled.

Sky gave a frustrated little huff, banging on the door with her padded forehoof. “You’re impossible, you know that?”

“Good! I’d hate to be easy!” Shadow said with an innocent little squee.

The viewport slid open once more, revealing the same pair of mismatched eyes as before.

“Don’t tell me she’s managed to bump her head again?” Sawblades asked exasperatedly.

“Not this time,” Sky replied, shaking her head. “This time we’re looking for weapons. Something that can take somepony out of a fight without killing them.”

Sawblades stared a little longer before shutting the viewport and unlocking the door. He invited the two ponies in with a wave of his hoof, tussling Shadow’s mane as she passed.

“You look good in a burglar’s mask, kid. Super-scary.” He commented with a wink.

“You really think so?” Shadow asked, putting on her biggest, nastiest scary face.

“Kid, I treat crooks for a living. Trust me, I’ve seen big and tough, and you look pretty big and tough.” He grinned, locking up before leading them into his office. “Now, let’s see what we’ve got here.”

When all three of them were safely in his office, Sawblades tapped a hoof to his chin, starting to search through his locker.

“So, you want a weapon that can put a pony down without killing them…” he frowned, “what about a Taser?”

“What, you think I’m made of money?” Sky asked, glancing sidelong at the freshly-refilled bowl of lollies.

“Point taken…” Sawblades chuckled, blowing a few errant strands of hair out of his face. “Well, how about something that’ll turn them into a toad?”

“That’s more of a unicorn thing.” Sky shrugged. “What’ve you got that I could use on the job?”

“Well...there is something…” Sawblades said slowly, “but that depends on how comfortable you are with alchemy.”

“Alchemy’s kinda weird…” Sky replied doubtfully, “but I’m willing to give it a go if it’ll get the job done.”

“Well, you’ll like this, then.” Sawblades grinned, pulling a conical flask filled with a glowing green fluid out of the locker and holding it up for observation.

“Great. You blended boogers.” Sky deadpanned.

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up.” Sawblades chuckled. “No, this stuff is sleep formula. Its active ingredient is benzodiazepine, so it’s guaranteed to put a full-grown stallion in the dirt in under thirty seconds. Good against everypony from foals to well-trained guards.”

“Guess it’s not as simple as just spiking somepony’s water flask with this stuff, huh?” Sky asked, taking the flask and looking it over.

“I wish.” Sawblades scoffed. “Still, there are other ways to deliver the formula. I mean, if you could find the right kind of crossbows, I could easily load this stuff into dart capsules for you.”

“So we’d have real-life sleep darts, would we?” Sky asked, intrigued. “Okay, I’ll tell you what. If I can find the right crossbows, you’ll supply the darts, right?”

“Sure. I can even do it free of charge, if you want.” Sawblades shrugged. “Just depends on what you want to use them for.”

“Well, we found the guy who’s been killing off all of the burglars.” Sky frowned, setting the flask down. “Turns out it’s a guy with some...personal history with me. I’m gonna use these things to keep us both safe from him.”

“Better you than some weird date-rapist. You won’t believe how much some ponies have tried to pay me for this stuff, but I figured I’d hold onto it for somepony who really needs it.” Sawblades smiled. “So, what’s the plan?”

“The plan is; we get the darts, load them up into our crossbows and knock Stronghooves out the next time he comes after us.” Sky grinned. “Trust me, he will come after us, too.”

“How can you be sure?”

“He’s my brother.”

Sawblades’s ears splayed back against his head as he picked up the flask, heading out into the clinic proper.

“I’ll...I’ll get these ready for you…” He said quietly.

As soon as he was gone, Sky and Shadow gave the bowl of lollies another cheeky glance.

“Coast is clear!” Shadow whispered.

Sky licked her lips, reaching out into the bowl to seize her prize…

SNAP!

“OW!”

“Oh, by the way,” Sawblades continued, poking his head back into the office, “I hid a mousetrap in the bowl of candy, just in case anypony got any more bright ideas. You weren’t going to try and pinch another lollipop, were you?”

Sky stared at him, her hoof still trapped in the increasingly incriminating bowl of lollies.

“Not at all!” She smiled. “I was just rearranging them!”

“Don’t steal my lollies, Sky.” Sawblades chuckled, trotting off.

As soon as they were both sure that he’d gone, Shadow pulled the bowl of lollies over and emptied it into Sky’s saddlebag, leaving her big sister with a great big mousetrap jammed on her hoof.

“Busted!” Shadow giggled.

“Shut up.”