Time trickled by slowly in shivering silence as the two girls attempted to process what they’d learned.

Sunset spoke up first, tentative. “Rainbow, let’s go.” Her soft voice seemed loud over the downpour.

“They lied to me, Sun. They both lied…” Rainbow’s voice was faint in comparison—throttled by the betrayal that choked her.

How could this be? After all these years, how could her father just drop this in her lap. It was so cruel and terrible, she didn’t know what to do. Should she go back inside and demand an explanation?

No… No, she couldn’t do that. This was the game. The terrible mind tricks that her father employed when someone close to him was rebelling.

Put them off-kilter, leave them vulnerable and upset, then reel them back in with ruthless authority.

She saw the trap laid before her, but Rainbow Dash still considered running headlong into it just to let her father know what a bastard he was for doing this.

Perhaps sensing Rainbow’s inner debate, Sunset held a warding hand toward the building’s entrance. “Rainbow, don’t give him the satisfaction. He’s toying with you!”

Rainbow’s jaw clenched. “I know that. I know that, Sun, but…” she glared over her shoulder into the building.

“Let’s go to the diner on Fifth Ave,” Sunset suggested with a light tone. “I’ll buy you a cup of coffee, and we can talk where it’s dry and warm.”

Rainbow bared her teeth, her shoulders tightening. “Damn it…”

“Rainbow…”

“Sunset, they lied!” Rage bolstered Rainbow’s words. It crackled through her like the untamed fury of the lightning overhead. The wind surged. It scythed them with its chill.

“I know, Dashie. I’m so sorry.” Sunset hugged her tightly. Rainbow slowly returned it, her eyes staring wide over her friend’s shoulder.

They stood like that a moment, shivering under the assailing rain. The overhang’s meager cover no longer sheltered them even partially. It was as though the world was flooding, the skies downpour drowning everything...

Rainbow felt like she was drowning.

Sunset pulled away, wincing apologetically. “The storm’s going to get worse. We really should go.”

The tomboy could only bring herself to nod once.

Rainbow let Sunset guide her back to the car. Once inside and buckled in, she stared ahead through the windshield, seeing nothing as the other girl started the engine and began to pull out of the parking lot. Memories of Rainbow’s mother came against her will.

Windy Whistles… A woman with freckled cheeks and short-cropped scarlet hair who was exceedingly kind and supportive, almost to the point of feeling suffocating. Though typically mild-mannered and soft-spoken, Windy seemed to ignite to life when watching Rainbow Dash do… well... anything. She was always cheering the loudest, right in the front row, bearing the biggest smile in the world. Rainbow had found it embarrassing at first… Then it just became a new pressure to contend with.

Blaze demanded a winner. But Windy? She expected a winner. This subtle difference meant all the world to a young Rainbow Dash, who was precociously aware of how her mother seemed to rely on her daughter’s successes to lift her weary depression.

“You’re my little star, Rainbow Dash,” Windy had said. “My precious little star!”

At age nine, before her mother left, Rainbow distinctly remembered thinking before a soccer game: What would happen if she failed? Would that coveted smile even appear? What would that disappointment look like if Windy saw her ‘little star’ screw it all up? Would her depression worsen?

The car came to a halt and shut off. Rainbow blinked and looked around. They were outside of the diner Sunset had mentioned. On the lawn next to their parking space, a large elm tree was being buffeted by the storm winds.

“Let’s get that coffee, Dashie,” her friend said as she undid her seatbelt. “The storm is pretty bad. We might be better off waiting for it to ease up.”

Rainbow didn’t move. When Sunset saw her stillness, she stopped, one hand on the door. Her cyan eyes tensed with apparent concern.

“I thought my mom cared,” Rainbow murmured. Her fists clenched over her wet jeans. “Windy was always cheering the loudest for me. I thought…” She swallowed as grief rose up, ugly and overwhelming. She bared her teeth against it, willing the anger to surge again so as to consume it.

Her scalp tingled as her chest grew hot. Her limbs felt electric. Overhead, lightning flashed, swiftly followed by loud thunder. The wind blew so hard, the car actually rocked a little.

“But then she left,” Rainbow continued, wiping furiously at her damp eyes. “I thought I'd disappointed her. I thought maybe it was my fault.”

Sunset reached for her hand. “Of course it wasn’t—”

Rainbow struck her fist into her thigh, making the other girl flinch away. “I know that! It wasn’t my fault that coward quit on our family!” The tomboy looked at her friend, her rage searing in her eyes. “But when I was nine-years-old, I didn’t know what else to think! My mom packed her things and left in the middle of the night... without me. Me! The person she called her ‘little star’.”

She threw her hands up, laughing humorlessly. “Seriously! It was like I was the only thing keeping her smiling!” Rainbow shook her head. “I knew she was miserable with my dad, but I was her freaking reason to be happy! I worked hard to keep her cheering, to make her forget being sad, even for just a little bit!”

“You never should have dealt with that,” Sunset said quietly. “You aren’t responsible for your parents happiness. That’s pressure no child should feel…”

“Well, I felt it,” Rainbow said bitterly. “But in the end, I wasn’t enough for Windy. She left like a rat, leaving me with my asshole dad.”

Sunset ran her hands over the steering wheel but kept silent.

There was a long pause. Then...

“She never visited,” Rainbow said. Her face swiftly crumpled under a fresh assault of tears. They took her by surprise, and she turned her face away, letting her hair curtain forward to hide them.

Sunset’s voice was clearly pained. “Oh, Rainbow Dash…”

“She was so close, and she never visited, never called, never even sent me a stupid letter!” Rainbow growled through her teeth. She swiped her arm over her eyes. “She didn’t care! And she was so close! How could she not care?! I did everything I could to make her happy!”

“You don’t know that she didn’t care,” Sunset said. “Rainbow, we don’t know how long she’s even been in the area!”

“So what? How does any of that matter?”

Sunset’s mouth pressed thin. “Well, knowing your father, I doubt he made it easy for your mother to get in touch with you!”

Rainbow punched her dashboard, making Sunset jump.

“FUCK that!” Rainbow screamed. She looked at Sunset, shaking not from the cold, but from her unchecked wrath.

Lightning struck again over them, washing everything in brilliant white light. The thunder felt crushing in its awesome power.

“If that bitch cared enough, then nothing should have kept her away! I was her only daughter! I was family. That should have been enough! That should have been—NGHH!” The tomboy arched into her seat dramatically, her face contorting in pain.

Sharp sensations stabbed her in the back, piercing at her shoulder blades. Her veins burned and nausea swept over her. The tingling on her scalp intensified. Her chest felt like someone had poured molten lava into it. Her limbs were screaming from crackling energy.

“Rainbow?!” Sunset’s voice was panicked. She grabbed Rainbow’s shoulder.

“My back!” Rainbow gasped, twisting sideways in her seat so as not to rest against her shoulder blades. “It freaking hurts!” She clumsily shrugged her jacket from her shoulders and tried weakly to reach behind her to feel what was happening… then she stilled, her eyes popping wide.

She met Sunset’s fearful gaze.

“Sunset,” she wheezed. “I… I think I feel my wings coming in!”

Now Sunset’s brows clashed as she rose up, placing a knee on the center console to lean over and peer at Rainbow’s back.

“Sweet Celestia… You’re right, Rainbow!”

“What’s happening?” Rainbow asked, her voice pitching higher with fear. “Sunset, why—aaah!”

There was an audible crunch as Rainbow felt her winglimbs burst suddenly out of her back, ripping her t-shirt. Another wave of nausea hit her as stars danced in her eyes. The burning in her chest was beyond words. She could feel the water on her skin sizzling from her elevated body temperature.

“Sunset…?” Rainbow looked up at her looming friend weakly.

Sunset Shimmer’s face was pale. She settled back into her seat… or more like flopped. She gazed at Rainbow with open concern.

“I’m so stupid,” Sunset whispered shakily. She pressed a trembling hand to her forehead and stared. “Rainbow, I’m an idiot, I’m so sorry.”

“Sun, what the heck is happening?”

Sunset took hold of Rainbow’s face and spoke quickly. “Your magic. It’s responding to your emotions. It’s gotta be!” She winced. “Geez, Dashie, you’re burning up!”

Rainbow’s eyes fluttered. She felt feverish. “S’cuse me?”

Sunset’s eyes squeezed shut. “I know! I know. It sounds crazy, but think about it… You go through a terrible experience and learn something super upsetting, then not too long after, your body just starts changing? It has to be related!”

Rainbow shook her head frantically, trying to sit up straight again. This was ridiculous. This wasn’t fair. She was proud of her powers. The magic had chosen her as a kind of champion! How could it be twisting inside of her?

Her eyes narrowed. If Blaze, that bastard, hadn’t gone and—!

The wind wailed over the car, pushing it so hard the vehicle rocked and forced the two girls to brace themselves. When the car settled, Rainbow doubled over with a shout, feeling her winglimbs grow. Everything burned with pain.

Sunset looked around her wildly. Then slowly she regarded Rainbow with unmistakable fear. “Rainbow, what were you thinking about just now?”

Rainbow grunted as she fought weakly to pull her arms out of her jacket—she felt too hot. As Sunset helped her, she hissed, “I was thinking about my dumbass dad—!”

The wind rocked the car again, this time followed by another close shot of lightning. Rainbow swallowed another cry as her back flared in agony once more.

Sunset’s words were trembling now as she took hold of Rainbow’s hand. “Rainbow Dash, I really need you to listen to me.” Her mouth jawed open and closed, her eyes tensing as she tried to form the words. Finally she stammered out, “I think the storm is also responding to your emotions.”

Rainbow stared at her. “No way.”

“I—I realize that seems premature to say without more evidence, but given what’s happening right now—!”

“Sunset, I can’t control the weather! I’ve never been able to do anything like that!”

“I hear you, but Dashie this storm—”

“I mean— hell! Do you have any idea what you’re saying right now?” Rainbow’s voice started to rise, her face twisting into a scowl. “It’s not my fault this storm sucks anymore that it’s my fault my parents suck!”

The wind roared over the car, rocking it violently. Rainbow was thrown backward into the passenger door, her vision fuzzing out at the pain that erupted from landing on her back and newly forming wings. Sunset, meanwhile, toppled over onto the center console.

When Rainbow sat up with a pained expression, she was stunned to see that the car had actually moved a foot or two to the side. Outside on the lawn, one of the tree’s branches split with a deafening crack, falling onto the power lines. There were sparks from the nearby transformer, then the streetlights went dark.

The houses across the street and the diner in front of them went dark too.

Rainbow gazed at this destruction, slack-jawed.

“Rainbow…” Sunset’s voice was thin and fearful. “I know this is hard to hear, but this storm worsens every time you let your emotions get the better of you!”

Rainbow looked at her, breathing hard. She opened her mouth to speak, but another stab of tormentous growth wrenched her forward, swallowing her words in an agonized hiss. She could feel her winglimbs lengthen, the audible sound of bones crunching into the forming flesh. Sunset steadied her shoulders, keeping her upright.

Rainbow’s hands curled into claws as the overwhelming energy bit deep into her limbs, the heat in her chest making it difficult to even breathe properly.

“I understand being confused, Rainbow,” Sunset said. Her words were clipped but it was clear she was trying to regain some composure. “You’ve trusted your powers for a long time, and you’ve only ever associated them with good things. But there was always a chance that our powers could change and grow as we got older. Not just that, but change in a way we are not prepared for!”

She cupped Rainbow’s cheek, causing the tomboy to meet her eyes again. “Controlling the weather? It could be the magic’s way of manifesting the talents of your Equestrian counterpart! Or maybe it’s responding to some hidden desire of yours? Who knows! Magic isn’t quite the same in this world as it is in Equestria!”

Her brow tightened. “All I know is that this change has resulted in a surge of power. It’s probably temporary, but with your emotions running amok, the magic is operating at a level that is dangerous… It’s literally left you running hot. Out of control magic can have wild and devastating effects.” She nodded at Rainbow’s back. “Like changing your form.”

Rainbow’s face slackened. “Is what happened to you and Twi happening to me?” Fear lanced through her. “Sunset, will it change who I am, too?”

Sunset shook her head strongly. “No! No way, Dashie, I won’t let that happen. But if what I’m guessing is correct, then we need to get this under control ASAP.”

“And how do we do that??” Rainbow asked.

Sunset smiled shakily. “By calming down?”

Rainbow’s expression darkened. “Or else.”

“You can do this. You can, Rainbow! Try breathing with me.” Sunset inhaled deeply. “In…” she exhaled slowly. “And out.”

Rainbow’s face screwed up and she pushed Sunset away. “Not happening!” She flinched, then thumped a hand on her chest. “Geez, are you kidding? It hurts just to breathe right now! Argh!” She steadied herself on the center console as another nauseating phase of growth assaulted her.

“Dashie—!”

“Sunset, I can’t do this!” Rainbow panted. She winced, and her vision swam once more. “How can I calm down?! I am literally changing against my will! There’s a storm outside that’s getting worse by the second! My freaking parents abandoned me! How the fuck am I supposed to calm down right now?!”

Sunset squeezed her shoulders. “Rainbow, don’t forget. Whatever your parents may have done, you still have your friends! You still have Fluttershy!”

Rainbow’s eyes fluttered as she tried to will her vision into focus again. She grabbed onto Sunset’s arm and was alarmed to see her veins glowing beneath her skin.

Her winglimbs surged, making Rainbow cry out as they pressed against the passenger window. All along their length, she could feel the skin tingle. The feathers were trying to sprout.

“If Fluttershy saw me, she would freak,” Rainbow gasped. She shook her head, the despair squeezing her throat. “She’d be afraid of me.”

“She’d hold you and tell you everything would be all right, Rainbow,” Sunset said firmly. “You know she wouldn’t even hesitate! So imagine her doing it right now.”

“Sunset—”

“Just do it!”

Rainbow squeezed her eyes shut, her teeth bared. Sunset let her go. The tomboy tried to corral her thoughts.

None of this went down the way I wanted it to.

She tried to think of her girlfriend’s soft touch, but the crackling energy that radiated through her body seemed to incinerate her attempts. She grunted as her winglimbs grew further. Feathers shivered into being, itching the skin.

No transformation had ever happened this way. This was corrupted. This was wrong.

Wrong, like how her mother had abandoned her. Wrong, like how her father had exploited her.

Wrong, like how Lightning Dust had beat her.

It was all coming full circle. The magic in her that was pure loyalty, friendship, and love… It was becoming undiluted darkness to swallow the harmony in her heart.

She didn’t want this. She just didn’t know how to resist the change.

“Think about how much she cares about you, Rainbow,” Sunset said in a soft, coaxing voice. “Fluttershy is waiting for you. She would never turn away from you! Not even now.”

Desperate, Rainbow conjured Fluttershy’s soothing scent. Her mind leaped to this sensory detail with all the eagerness of a child for candy. Rainbow breathed in deep, her mind recalling images of Shy’s gentle smile.

I told her she was worth it, no matter what happened…

The tingling along her scalp lessened. Rainbow’s face relaxed some as she thought about seeing Fluttershy again that evening. How she’d get to hold her. To kiss her.

I… I meant it. She is worth it. That never changed. How could I forget that?

Her taste buds erupted with the vivid memory of her girlfriend’s body. She could almost hear Fluttershy saying her name, laced with passion.

Flutters…

Rainbow let her head loll sideways onto the headrest. Her breathing calmed, becoming less labored and aching. The minutes ticked by, and eventually, the burning in her chest eased.

With a tingling numbness occasionally punctuated by twinges of sharp pain, her winglimbs receded, bones cracking back into non-existence.

Rainbow’s eyes opened carefully. Sunset was turned similarly in the driver’s seat, her back resting against the door. Her eyes were wide, but she was smiling now.

“You did it, Rainbow,” Sunset said, her smile widening. “The storm has calmed down as well.”

Rainbow raised her head and looked around. The rain had indeed lessened to a typical rain shower. The tree on the front lawn was no longer bowed from the force of the winds.

She lifted an arm, heavy though it felt, and saw her veins weren’t glowing anymore.

Her brow furrowed. “Sunset, why did my powers go nuts?”

She gingerly tried to pull her jacket back on. Her shoulders were feeling sore where her wings had nearly sprouted. She sighed at the feel of her jacket on her shoulders’ bared skin. This t-shirt was ruined.

Sunset brushed her wet hair back, a look of disquiet overcoming her features. “I don’t know.” Her jaw pushed forward as she scowled down at her lap, apparently debating something. Then she said, “Fluttershy called saying something was going on with her, too.”

Rainbow’s body tensed and she leaned forward. “What?!”

Sunset held up her hands with a look of alarm. “Woah, hey! She’s all right, Rainbow! Last I talked to her, she was just dealing with heightened senses. Super hearing, super sense of smell… that kind of thing!”

Rainbow let out a huge breath, collapsing back into her seat. “Geez, Sun! You scared me half to death…”

“Sorry.” Sunset rubbed her chin, one eyebrow arching. “But I think it’s safe to say that whatever you were exposed to, so was Fluttershy. Why else would you both be experiencing these power spikes tonight?”

Rainbow shrugged. She was so tired...

“Can you think of anything out of the ordinary that you both encountered recently?”

Rainbow Dash turned her eyes up in thought. Eventually, she shook her head. “Nah. Nothing.”

“Are you sure?”

The tomboy rubbed at her temple. She could feel a headache coming on. “Sunset, we didn’t do anything special,” she mumbled.

Sunset turned over a hand. “It doesn’t have to be something magical in nature. Maybe you just did something you’d never done before?”

Rainbow stilled, her exhaustion giving way to anxiety.

No. No way… It couldn’t be that!

Sunset leaned in, her eyes narrowing. “Rainbow, your expression says you thought of something.”

Rainbow turned forward in her seat with a wince. “Um!”

“Listen, this is important! What if it could affect the rest of us?”

Rainbow crossed her arms, her face turning away. She could feel her cheeks burning. “I highly doubt it, okay?”

“But how can you be sure?”

Because the chances of any more of our friends sleeping with each other is practically impossible!

“I just am, Sunset,” she looked at her friend, her mouth pursed. “Just trust me, okay? If I think I need to, I promise I’ll tell you. Right now? I’m claiming a right to privacy!”

Sunset huffed but settled back into her seat.

Silence followed.

“Do you still wanna go get coffee?” Sunset asked with a squinted eye. She gestured at the diner. Rainbow hadn’t noticed, but the lights had apparently come back on. “They must have a backup generator or something, cuz it looks like the waitresses are still taking orders.”

Rainbow grimaced. “I’m still feeling a little nauseous. Can we just go back to the dorm? I think I need to crash.”

Sunset nodded and quickly started the car. “Sure thing.”

Except when she started to back up, something jumped onto the hood with a loud bang, making them both scream.

Pinkie Pie was glaring at Rainbow Dash, her eyes literally aglow as she knelt, cat-like on the car. She didn’t seem the least bit bothered by the rain, drenched though she was.

“You broke your promise!” She shouted wrathfully.

Rainbow Dash sank in her seat. “Sunset, punch it!”

Sunset didn’t move, her arms ramrod straight as she gripped the steering wheel with white knuckles. “And make her madder? No way! She’d just chase us down!”

Pinkie jabbed a finger at Rainbow. “Outta the car, missy!” she screeched.

Rainbow Dash groaned.

She almost wished her wings had finished growing just so she could escape Pinkie Pie’s wrath!

A short time later, inside the diner.

The lights were slightly dimmed but were functioning. There was a young couple seated at another booth, and an older man at the bar, with two waitresses and a cook working. Rainbow was relieved when the only thing these people remarked on was how her car had somehow been moved by the wind.

The girls placed their orders. Rainbow passed on getting anything. She and Sunset endeavored to fill Pinkie in on what happened. They had to stop a few times when one of the waitresses passed them or stopped to chat, but eventually they got through it all.

“There you have it, Pinks,” Rainbow said wearily. She leaned back in her seat at the diner booth. “I lost my head because my dad disowned me and I learned my mom is still in town.” She shifted forward again with a little grimace. Her back still didn’t feel great.

Pinkie Pie, who was on the other side of the table nodded solemnly, a giant slice of apple pie with vanilla ice cream sitting on a plate in front of her. “That’s awful, Dashie. I’m really sorry.”

“So you forgive me?”

“Course’ I do!”

“What were you doing out here anyway, Pinkie Pie?” Sunset asked at Pinkie’s side. She had a mug of coffee held in both hands as she leaned on the table.

Pinkie grinned. “I was doing deliveries for the Cakes nearby when my Pinkie Sense went nuts! I followed it to where you guys were.” She blew a raspberry and proceeded to cut off a big bite from her plate. “Not that it was super difficult or anything!” She thumbed out the diner windows. “I just had to go where the storm was the craziest!”

This made Rainbow and Sunset look at each other in surprise.

“Wait, you mean the storm wasn’t this bad anywhere else?” Rainbow asked. She could feel the sweat forming on her skin. Please tell me I didn’t cause some freak damage all over the place…!

Pinkie nodded. “Yup! The storm was only yucky over the diner.” She shoved her bite of pie into her mouth, then said thickly around her food, “Ith a gud thing too! Woo-da made muh de-liv-er-eez waaay hawder!”

Rainbow let out a breath of relief. Sunset reached over and patted her hand with a smile.

Pinkie winked as she started to cut off another bite of pie. “No sweat, Dashie. Whatever was going on with you didn’t spread too far!”

“Apparently no one saw anything either,” Sunset added in a lowered voice. “In a weird way, the light’s going out on the block and the thick rain actually worked in our favor!”

“Cool. I’m… super glad.” Rainbow bounced her knees under the table. “So, Pinkie, I guess you’re done with classes altogether, huh?” she asked. It was an obvious attempt at changing the subject, but she didn’t really care.

“Yeeeeeah…” Pinkie shoveled another large bite into her mouth. After she swallowed, she said, “With the 80s party so close, there’s no point in trying to keep it up. My sorority status isn’t at risk, so I’ll be allowed to work on it, no problemo. I’ve started working full time at Sugarcube Corner instead.”

Sunset took a sip of her coffee. “I’m still trying to think of how I can help you guys with the party…”

Rainbow shrugged. “Let’s play a set!”

“You mean get the band back together?”

Rainbow sat up, a smile lighting up her face. “Sure, why not?”

Sunset bumped Pinkie’s shoulder. “That could work!”

Pinkie beamed, hopping in her seat. “That’s such a great idea!” She cocked her head to the side, her eyebrow arching. “Do you think any of the others will be up for it, too?”

“Maybe!” Sunset set her mug down. “Even if it’s just us, though, we ought to be able to play something!”

Rainbow rapped her knuckles on the table. “Damn, right! Sounds like a plan, girls. We ought to be able to squeeze in a rehearsal or two from now till the big event. We’ll slay!”

Pinkie pumped a fist. “Woo hoo! The Sonic Rainbooms will rock again!” Sunset laughed and lifted her coffee mug in a salute.

Rainbow grinned but fell quiet. Her eyes dropped to stare through the table. On the glossed surface, she saw Pinkie and Sunset exchange looks.

She heard her friends chatter quietly about other things. Things she couldn’t bring herself to focus on or even feign the least bit interest in. Rainbow didn’t mean to be rude, she just… felt out of it and distracted. Anxious, even.

Though she hated to think about it, she had to wonder— what would life be like without Blaze? Should she even try to find her mother? Could she survive without any family? What about money?

Sure, her scholarship covered school, but there was still food, gas, her cellphone bill… And what if something happened to her car? The storm could have damaged the wheels when it tilted the vehicle. The five hundred her father gave her wouldn’t last forever.

Time passed. She wasn't sure how much. The next thing Rainbow knew, Pinkie rose up, her plate clean. The tomboy blinked in surprise.

“I gotta get back!” the party planner sighed. “I promised Mrs. Cake I’d help her with an order. I’m running late as it is.”

“We were gonna head back to the dorms.” Sunset sidled out of the booth and went to hug her friend. “It was nice to warm up and chat, Pinkie.”

Rainbow rose and went to Pinkie with arms held out. “Bring it in, Pinks,”

Pinkie hugged the tomboy tightly. Over her shoulder, she murmured, “You’ll be okay, Dashie. You’ll see.”

Rainbow felt the tears prick her eyes but fought them down. “So will you,” she whispered. Her arms squeezed around her friend, and they stayed like that for a long moment.

I don’t know what will happen…

She let go of Pinkie Pie and they shared a knowing smile. Though their struggles weren’t the same, they still faced an unknown future that held the promise of stark challenges never before faced. Rainbow felt her spine straighten a little, heartened that she wasn’t the only one crossing uncharted territory.

But I’m going to get through this. We’ll all get through this together.

For the lolz, you guys can read a discarded story draft (one of three) that I ultimately swerved because it was just stupid. Check it out on my blog.

Also, just another reminder that I post more writing updates to my pony Twitter (NSFW). I'm going to start pinning the latest to the top of my profile so people don't have to scroll through my (occasionally) horny feed. I tweet which story I'm working on, word counts, and editing status--amidst all the things that fight to distract me, of course.

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