Ancient Relics and Cat Claws

Starry Skies lowered her sunglasses, amber eyes narrowing as she looked around the place. The Surly Sow certainly looked like the type of bar where beings of questionable repute would meet to discuss certain matters of a less than appropriate -- or legal -- nature. The place was poorly lit. There were a small number of patrons around, with most of them turning to look at her as she stood at the door. Others, she was certain were making a point to ignore her. Among the former was a griffon that was glaring at her, and of the latter was a changeling that was not even trying to disguise itself.

It made Star feel a little out of place with her jacket and sunglasses. Considering all she saw, it seemed unlikely that anyone here would have given a bat pony a second look. In fact, the outfit made her stick out more than if she had been without it. Her wings shifted under the jacket, a desire to stretch them out suddenly coming over her.

Taking off her glasses, she stuck them in her pocket, then waved at the door.

In walked what looked to be an earth pony. He was a heavy-set stallion, with a thick mustache which -- along with his mane and tail -- was mostly gray in color. He stopped near Starry Skies and looked around, taking in the room around them.

"You go ahead and grab us a table," Starry Skies said. "I'm going to get us some drinks."

"Do see if they have some of that 'mead' stuff," the stallion said in a gruff voice. "I would like to try something with honey in it."

"As long as it's in an unopened bottle," mumbled Star as she turned to head toward the bar. She did not trust the cleanliness of the glasses in this place. Or any of the beings for that matter. Any one of them could be willing to drug their drinks, either with the intent of killing or abducting them.

That was one of the problems in meeting in such a place. Any of the creatures here could be working for another organization, or have certain connections. They could have plans to abduct and interrogate, or kill someone. Or they could simply listen in and pick up secrets, either taking them back to their bosses, or selling the information to the highest bidder.

If the look the bartender gave her was an indication, he was just as suspicious of Star as she was about him and the others. He said nothing as he got the three beers she ended up ordering, and turned away from her once she had paid her bits.

"They didn't have mead," she said as she joined the old stallion at the table, "or much of anything besides beer and hard liquor."

With a slight grunt, the stallion took the beer and gave it a swig.

"Such is the fate of those of our standing," he sighed out. "We must travel to such locales as the idea of a good drink it but an idle fantasy." Throwing his head back, he placed a hoof to his forehead. "Oh, how we must suffer for the good of our kingdom and its rulers."

Starry Skies could not help but roll her eyes at the reaction, but said nothing. Taking a seat that let her watch the door (and kept her back to a wall), she set the third beer down near her and took a sip of her own. She kept her gaze split between the stallion and the door, her ears shifting to pick up any possible sounds coming from around them.

"Are you certain she'll be here?" asked the stallion.

"As certain as we can be in a situation like this," Star replied. "This was the place and day she gave us, and close to the time, but it can be pretty hard to keep to a schedule in a job like hers."

"I suppose," he huffed out. "Still, I would much prefer that we complete this transaction as soon as possible. Why can't we ever be sent to a spa, or a beach?"

"We did have a job on a beach not too long ago."

"That doesn't count. I mean a nice warm beach with plenty of sand to lay out and sun ourselves on. Not a cold, foggy beach covered in rocks that may or may not hold smugglers." He shuddered. "I swear, I still find salt in places to this day." He then shifted his eyes narrowing.

"Although... if a certain somepony wanted to help lick it off..." One eyebrow lifted.

"I told you not to flirt with me when you look like that," Star said before taking another drink.

"Sorry," the stallion said with a grin. "Just couldn't resist."

Some time passed in silence, the two of them slowly working on their drinks. Some of the patrons left while new ones entered. Each time one came in, Starry Skies would study them, checking to see if they were the pony the two of them were waiting for, or a possible threat. Some she kept a better eye on than others.

The door opened wide and a pegasus mare stepped in. In the momentary sunlight, Starry Skies managed to catch sight of a sandy brown coat and gray tail. The mane and face was somewhat obscured by a pith helmet. The helmet and head lifted up, possibly scanning the room.

Starry Skies held up a hoof and gave a small wave, getting a nod in response. She then leaned forward and whispered, "she's here."

The stallion set his beer aside and straightened up. He puffed out his chest and ran a hoof down it, adjusting his tie.

"How do I look?" he asked.

"Like a middle-management bureaucrat," Star replied.

"Perfect," he said with a grin before turning toward their approaching contact.

"Miss Daring Do. How wonderful of you to make it. Please have a seat. We got you a drink if you're interested."

Daring Do took a seat and grabbed the beer. As she threw her had back to chug it down, Starry Skies had the opportunity to study her up close. There were signs of mud or dirt stuck to her coat, and something else Star could not quite make out. There were also multiple spots where the fur was shorter than the rest.

"Okay," Daring said as she set down the now empty beer bottle, "you know who I am and you got me here. Now who are you and what do you want?"

"No small talk?" the stallion asked, pouting a little. "I like having small talk. At least the pretense of camaraderie and all that. But fine, straight to it. You can call me Mister Middle. This is my associate, who would prefer not to give a name. We represent some ponies who have heard rumors about your recent expedition, and wish to attain a certain item you may have discovered."

Daring Do took her helmet off and looked at Mister Middle with narrowed eyes.

"What sort of ponies?"

"The type that want to keep Equestria safe and continue to guarantee its prosperity," Mister Middle replied. "Ones that feel that, in this particular case, having the article in question placed in a museum would be insufficient of protecting the kingdom."

"But they don't want to be associated with it," Daring continued, "so they sent you to buy it."

"If it comes down to that, we can. However, you and I both know that bits are not really the issue here, seeing as you are quite wealthy from your adventures being quite popular with young readers."

Daring Do's eyes went wide, her wings spreading out in surprise.

"But only the Pr--"

Before she could get any further, Starry Skies lunged forward and shoved her hoof in Daring Do's mouth, muffling the rest of the statement. This got a gasp from the other mare, who yanked backwards and slapped the hoof away.

"What the hay?" Daring snapped, now glaring at Star.

"I apologize for my associate's reaction," Mister Middle said calmly. "However, you must understand. We do not know who may be listening in on the conversation, and those we represent do not wish to have their connection to this known. As such, whether correct or not, declaring who may or may not be aware of Daring Do's connection to A.K. Yearling could potentially cause problems. If the guess is accurate, it will just be for those we represent. If not, then possibly for them, but certainly more so for those who were assumed so. To that end, we do not even have anything which could thoroughly prove our official connection to any pony of interest."

Daring Do looked at the two of them, eyes narrowed and lips pursed.

"I'm going to get another beer."

She gave them one last look before getting up and heading toward the bar.

"I can't believe you shoved your hoof into her mouth like that," Middle whispered, turning to Star with wide, oddly faceted, emerald green eyes.

"I didn't know what else to do," Star whispered back. "If she had finished what she was saying and was overheard, it might cause trouble. That was a nice recovery, by the way."

Smirking slightly, he puffed out his chest.

"Improvisation is an important skill when it comes to acting," he said. "And is especially useful in a job like this."

Star tapped the stallion and pointed at the returning Daring Do. She resumed keeping an eye and ear open on the crowd, trying to pick out anything suspicious. Meanwhile, Mister Middle turned to face the approaching Daring Do, a small, professional smile on his face.

"This is supposed to be my last adventure," Daring said as she took her seat. "I've been getting too old for this job." With a sigh, she ran her hoof through her mane. "Barely even made it through this time. Well, more so than usual. If some of those traps had been a little faster, I would have ended up looking like a changeling from all the burns and arrows."

She took another long drink of her beer before continuing.

"Let's say -- just hypothetically -- that I believe you (and I'm not saying I do). If I give this item to you, what happens to it?"

"It will be placed in a vault in a location that few know the location of, and even less have access to," Mister Middle replied. "Not even my associate or I will have access unless we get direct orders from the highest authority. Although it may in time end up being studied by a pony of very high standing within the kingdom and proven to be extremely trustworthy and loyal. A pony whom you have met an associate of during a prior adventure."

Daring Do leaned back in her seat, staring at the two of them. One hoof rested on her bottle, slowly spinning it around. After letting out a snort, she reached into her saddle bag, pulled out a wooden box, set it on the table and pushed it across to them.

"Be careful if you open that," she said as she grabbed her beer. "It's a bit unstable and that box keeps the excess magic from going wild."

Slowly, Mister Middle took a hold of the box and pulled it closer. Leaning in close, he took a hold of the lid and lifted it up. Inside was a wand with a white staff and glowing pink star on the top. The star glowed and pulsed with light, small sparks spitting out of it.

"It's real," Mister Middle whispered, eyes wide. "One of the Rainbow Wands from ancient Unicornia." One hoof rose up, reaching out toward the wand to touch it.

There was a loud bang as something slammed against the door, knocking it off the hinges. Starry Skies lunged at Mister Middle, sweeping a leg across the table to slam the box shut on the wand and pulling it over to them. She then kicked the underside of the table, knocking it over to use as a shield as they hit the floor.

"DARING!" a deep voice bellowed.

"Ahuizotl," Daring cried out with a grin. "And here I was worrying I wouldn't see you. It would have just broken my heart if my last mission was without you."

"We both know you are not retiring, Miss Do," Ahuizotl said. "The thrill is in your blood too much. Now, give me the wand."

"Sorry to disappoint you," Daring called out as she leaped out of her spot and toward her opponent, "but you're too late. The wand is already gone."

After making sure the wand was still in the box, Starry Skies closed it and passed it to Mister Middle.

"I'll help Daring Do keep him busy," she stated. "While he's distracted, you sneak out with the wand, change disguises, and get out of here. I should be able to catch up with you at the dock."

"Right," Middle said, giving a nod.

While he got ready to run, Starry Skies looked around the table at Daring Do and Ahuizotl. Having read the stories and seen the covers, she was familiar with what the creature was supposed to look like, but seeing it in real life was very different. Supposedly, he was some sort of feline creature, but there was nothing cat-like about him except maybe the ears. The head was a big square brick, with the eyes just above the large mouth full of jagged teeth. His chest and front limbs were those of a gorilla. The back did look something like a cat's, except for the hand that was on the end of the tail.

"By the way," Ahuizotl said as he circled around Daring Do, keeping his eyes on her, "I have a new minion I'd like you to meet." He then gave a snap of his tail fingers.

There was a loud crash as something smashed through a boarded up window, showering the patrons with jagged splinters of wood. Standing in the room where it had landed was a manticore. The scorpion tail lashed back and forth as it straightened up. Spreading its draconic wings wide, it opened its massive lion mouth and let out a roar.

Star stared at it wide eyed before slipping back behind the table.

"Okay, change of plans. You get moving now. I'll try to keep the manticore busy and hope that Daring Do can keep her old nemesis preoccupied."

"Are you sure you can handle that thing by yourself?"

Shifting, Star peaked out at the creature again. It was larger than an actual lion, and nearly four times her size. She had been told about dealing with them before, but could not really remember the stories. Except one, but it seemed unlikely the manticore simply had a thorn in its paw this time.

"No," Star finally admitted. "But the job comes first, and that is to get that wand out of here. Besides, I just have to avoid its teeth... and claws... and the tail..." She took a breath and let it out. "Just need to keep it busy long enough for you to get a good head start."

She tilted her head to look at Middle from the corner of her eye.

"Hold on one second... and you may want to avert your eyes."

Turning away, Star raised a hoof to block the other pony from sight fully. Even with that, she could still see a bright flash of green magic.

"Okay," a lighter, more feminine voice said. "I'm ready."

Where a chubby brown earth pony had been was now a lean unicorn mare with solid black fur and hair. The only thing that looked the same was the oddly faceted emerald green eyes.

"On three, run," Star told her. "One. Two. Three!"

The black mare took off, moving as quickly and quietly as she could. Her black coat blended with the heavy shadows, allowing her to disappear in the dimly lit bar.

At the same time, Starry Skies grabbed one of the beer bottles and threw herself the opposite direction. Pulling her foreleg back, she launched the improvised projectile as hard as she could at the manticore. It hit the creature, bouncing off its flank before shattering against the floor.

"Hey furball!" she shouted. "Don't you have a ball of yarn that needs chasing or something!"

The manticore turned toward Star and let out another roar.

At which point Star realized that she did not have any sort of plan. Grabbing the closest chair, she held it out in front of her.

"Back, Simba." She waved the chair at the feline monster. "Back."

The scorpion tail reared up high before thrusting down at Star. As it did, she brought the chair up between her and the stinger. There was a loud thud as the tail struck, the tip piercing the wood and cutting through the padding, sticking out with venom dripping.

Star's amber eyes went wide as she stared at the barb so close to hitting her. If it had struck, it would have at least been painful, and put her at greater risk. Whatever the effects of manticore venom was, it would reduce her abilities to focus and react. In a situation like this, that could prove fatal.

The tail tugged back, yanking against the chair. After a second of resistance, Star let go, hoping that the chair would be stuck and render the stinger less of a threat (and admittedly, she was also hoping the creature would manage to hit itself in the head with the thing and knock itself out). Rolling to one side, she looked for something else to use to defend herself.

The manticore, meanwhile, was lashing its tail, trying to shake the chair off. It then shifted and turned, trying to grab at it with its forepaws. It was almost cute. Like an over-sized kitten. A very over-sized kitten. One that could eat a pony in two bites, had claws that could tear flesh to the bone, and a massive scorpion tail with a venomous barb on the tip.

A quick glance over confirmed that Daring Do was keeping Ahuizotl busy with ease. As such, Star would just need to come up with a way to deal with the manticore, and everything should work out fine. She should also work fast. The wand should be a good distance from them by now.

Raising its tail high, the manticore slammed it hard against the floor, freeing it from the chair.

Charging forward, Star jumped up and grabbed the tail, wrapping her forelegs around it as tight as she could. Her wings shifted, causing a moment of discomfort as they tried to spread out inside the jacket she was wearing. Hind legs kicking, she tried to get them onto the tail as well. As long as she held on, she was safe: the stinger could not get her, and it would be tough for the manticore to bite or scratch her. Now she just needed to figure out how to capitalize on it. Maybe she could get some leverage and twist it, throwing it off balance. Or--

There was a thud as she slammed into a table, a whuff escaping her as the air was knocked from Star's lungs. Her jaw clenched as she kept trying to hold on.

The manticore pulled its (his: Star realized the manticore was definitely male) tail up and back, getting ready to swing her again. This time, Star was ready for it. As she moved toward the table, she kicked out with a hind leg and knocked it over. She then slipped her hoof into the gap of a chair's back rest, pulling it with her.

Now what was she going to do with it?

Lifting her leg, she tried kicking the chair into the back end of the manticore. The kick ended up going wide, completely missing him. Worse, the chair went flying from her, leaving Star unarmed.

Hanging onto the tail was not working. She needed a better idea. Something that would stop or scare away the manticore. Something like...

Fire!

Letting the tail go, Star ran for the bar. With a jump, she went over the counter and slid across it (something that admittedly she always wanted to do), before landing behind it.

"I need your strongest alcohol," she said as she came down beside the hiding bartender. "And a lighter if you got one."

The bartender turned to look at her, brow furrowing.

"What?"

"Alcohol," repeated Star, "and a lighter. Or something that can make a flame."

After looking at her a while longer, the bartender gave a shake of his head and reached up to grab a clear bottle.

"Here. The cheapest stuff that'll burn. There should be a lighter in the drawer on the end."

Tossing some bits to the bartender, Star grabbed the vodka and started crawling along. Reaching the drawer, she stood up and looked out. No one was paying attention to her. Pulling the drawer open, she grabbed the lighter. A quick check made certain it work before flicking it shut again.

What she had in mind was crazy. And dangerous. It was something she had never even tried before. If it worked how Star hoped, it would scare off the manticore and possibly get Ahuizotl's attention. If it went poorly, she could end up burning herself, or -- worst case scenario -- set The Surly Sow on fire.

"Don't burn a place down" seemed like a pretty low standard to meet.

Star took a deep breath before slowly letting it out, gathering up her courage, and prayed to Luna that what she was about to do worked how she wanted. She then took the cap off the vodka and opened the lighter, flicking on the flame. After taking a quick swig of the alcohol, she shot out from behind the bar.

The manticore turned to face her, baring its teeth. Star lifted up the lighter and spat out the vodka she had in her mouth. Most of the alcohol sprayed across her foreleg, soaking into her jacket. Some of it managed to hit the flame, causing it to jump and sputter before returning back to normal.

It had been nowhere near as impressive or intimidating as it was when done properly or described in stories.

However, it seemed effective enough to make the manticore flee. After letting out a yowl, he turned and jumped back out through the window, running off until disappearing into the brush.

"WHERE ARE YOU GOING?!" Ahuizotl shouted. "Get back here."

"Aww," Daring said with a smirk. "Poor Ahuizotl. Did you new friend run away?"

"This is not over Daring Do. We will meet again. Be sure of it."

Ahuizotl then turn and ran, fleeing from the bar and leaving it empty save for three ponies.

Starry Skies shut the lighter and set it on the bar top. Grabbing the cap, she put it back on the bottle which she then tucked into her jacket. Pulling out the sunglasses, she put them back on.

"Miss Do, it was very nice to meet you. Good luck with whatever happens next, and just to be clear: we would very much appreciate it if this entire meeting managed to be left out of your next book."

A Dream Boat Ride

At the river docks, Starry Skies made her way to board The River Otter. She moved to and up the boarding plank with others, head low to keep hidden in the crowd. Her ears twitched and eyes scanned around her, searching for anything that might be a problem as well as seeing if she could find her partner.

Reaching check-in and getting the key for her room, Star learned that the other one had been picked up earlier. There was no reason to ask what the pony looked like since it was most likely still a disguise. Still, it was a positive sign.

...Unless something had happened to her and a potential assassin was waiting in their room to kill Star as soon as she entered...

Star's wings twitched under her jacket at the possibility. If that was actually the case, she would want to be able to take flight and try to get an edge. Although considering where she was, that would probably put her at greater risk, if not cause her to injure herself more than an opponent would.

Reaching the door to her suite, she stopped walking. Quiet as she could, she moved closer to the door and leaned in, listening closely. There was silence as far as she could tell.

Star knocked.

`"Who is it?" a voice called out.

The sound made Star relax slightly. Pushing the door open, she called back, "It's me."

Sitting on one of the beds was a white coated pegasus mare with a bright red mane and tail. There was a series of bandages wrapped around her middle, and one of the wings bulged out from her body. She looked at Star and smiled.

"Oh thank Celestia," she said as she was suddenly engulfed in an aura of green light. It vanished to reveal a mint green unicorn with four-colored mane and a parrot cutie mark. "Help me get these bandages off, please. This thing is driving me absolutely nuts."

After taking off her jacket and tossing it aside, Starry Skies walked over and started to undo the bandages.

"An injured pegasus, Mimic?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Injured ponies get sympathy," Mimic stated, her horn lit as she worked on the bandages, "and in some circumstances, special treatment depending on the severity." Turning her head, she raised an eyebrow. "Such as a poor pegasus mare being allowed to be one of the first aboard." A smirk spread across her mouth as she shifted. "Besides, I had to hide the box to carry it with me, so the bulge of a 'broken wing' under the bandages was the best I could think up."

"That's pretty clever," Star said as she saw the box pressing against Mimic beneath the bandages.

"Of course it is. I may have a pretty face, but I'm not just a pretty face you know."

Star could not help but roll her eyes at her partner's statement. All the same she unwrapped the bandages to reveal the box containing the wand. Although she knew she did not need to, he could not help but check on the wand, making sure it was still inside.

"Oh that feels so much better," Mimic groaned out, stretching. "That thing was digging into my sides for hours."

"Why didn't you take it off sooner?"

"In case you didn't make it for some reason, or someone else showed up looking for it before you got here. If I took it off and had to try and wrap it back up, I don't know if I could get it in the exact same spot."

Rolling over, she slipped off the bed.

"Now, I'm going to grab a quick shower." Turning, she smiled at Star. "Want to join me?"

"Pass," Starry Skies replied. "I think--"

Before she could speak any further, there was a knocking at the door.

Opening it, Starry found a young stallion dressed in a uniform.

"Are you --" he held up an envelope "-- Starry Skies?"

"Yes?"

"A message just arrived for you." He held the envelope out to her.

"Thank you," Star said as she took the message.

It was a dark colored envelope, made of a thick paper. It more than likely had some anti-magic measure to keep from the contents being read. The flap was sealed with black wax, a five point star surrounded by a pair of bat wings creating the mark in the middle. On the other side was Star's name.

Breaking the seal, Star pulled out the message and read it.

"Unexpected circumstances have arisen," the note said. "Immediate update required. Expecting report right away."

"Mimic, please take this into the bathroom with you," Star said as she held out the envelope and letter.

"Guess you'll be taking a nap now," Mimic said as she grabbed the envelope and letter in her magic.

"Looks like it," replied Star as she climbed into one of the beds. Getting comfortable, she closed her eyes and tried to relax, letting herself drift off to sleep.

Starry Skies found herself standing in an office with two chairs at her side. Before her was a desk, with Princess Luna sitting behind it.

"Welcome, Starry Skies," Princess Luna said. "Please take a seat. Can I offer you any refreshments?"

"No, thank you," Star replied as she sat down in one of the thick, plush chairs. They were always the perfect firmness for her.

Whether from habit, decorum, or an attempt to help others feel more comfortable, Princess Luna always offered refreshments. Star had never accepted the offer. Knowing it was all a dream took a bit of interest in eating since it would never actually be filling. Kind of made the activity pointless.

"No children with you today?" Star asked, looking around.

"It is day," Luna replied, pouring herself a cup of tea. "They have much to learn should they ever become proper rulers in the future. Although I am certain that Nightmare shall be disappointed in missing you, and excited that you have asked about her."

Luna then took a sip of her tea before continuing.

"Now, to business. I can conclude by your arrival that you were able to make it to the boat. Were you able to get the wand?"

"Yes," Star answered. "There were, admittedly, a few complications, but not on our end." She then went on to tell the princess about what happened: meeting Daring Do; the wand and how it was leaking magic; Ahuizotl's attack, and his pet manticore; and Mimic's escape with the wand. Although she chose not to give the specifics on how she tried to defeat said manticore since that was barely a success on her part.

"Sounds rather entertaining," Princess Luna said. "I am grateful that you were able to succeed, and that you and Mimic were able to do so unharmed."

"Is that why you wanted an immediate report?" Star asked. "Were some others injured?"

"No," Luna replied. "No such thing happened, fortunately. There was a robbery. No ponies were harmed, although one was rendered unconscious somehow." Her horn lit up as the shape of a wand formed in front of her. "As you can see, it is an artifact similar to the one you were sent to retrieve, although far older. It is unknown what the wand is capable of or its exact age. However, some believe that is one of the wands from a legend, where six ponies -- each supposedly a princess -- were rivals competing to be the one that earns the title of queen in their lands."

The illusory wand vanished.

"It was stolen from a museum in Manehattan, where it was on loan from a descendant of Commander Hurricane. Considering that the object stolen is very similar to what I had sent you to retrieve, I am certain you can understand why I wish to have an immediate report on the matter."

Shifting, Starry Skies rubbed at her chin, considering the matter.

"In case they were attempting to seek out another for some reason?"

"Correct," Luna said. "An unlikely possibility, I know, but a possibility all the same, and thus, something that I cannot ignore. It may also be that there is more than one pony or group thereof that are working on similar plots. Should that be the case, then one of the others may seek out an alternative wand for their purpose."

"Well we're on the boat and heading upriver," Star told her. "We should be able to reach the train station tomorrow afternoon, and back in Canterlot by the following morning, barring any incident."

"An 'incident' is precisely what I am worried about. I shall not be satisfied until the wand is properly secured in the vault. To that end, I am amending your current duties. I wish for you and Mimic to be extra-vigilant while the wand is in your possession. At least one of you must be awake and with the artifact, guarding it until its arrival at the train station. There, a pair of pegasi with my token shall be waiting for you. They can then take the wand and fly it to command where it can be deposited in a high security vault."

"Wouldn't it be easier if I flew it myself once we get close enough?" Star asked.

"Easier, yes," Princess Luna agreed. "Perhaps even minutely quicker, but also with greater risk. As Mimic is a unicorn, you would have to make the flight on your own. Should something go wrong, you would have no assistance, nor would there be any way of knowing what may have happened to you.

"I am aware that I am possibly being paranoid, and taking excessive steps on the matter. However, I would rather take excessive measures and have them unnecessary, than to find them deficient."

"I understand." Star gave a slight bow of her head. "I promise that we will do everything we can to get the wand to them safe and sound."

"I know you will," Luna replied with a smile. "Now, if you will excuse me, it is almost time to play with my daughters, and I do not wish to miss it. Plus, I still have to tell Trixie of the change of plans."

With that, the princess got up and stretched out. Raising her head, her horn lit up before disappearing in a cloud of blue.

The rest of the cruise up river was uneventful. After taking her shower (and sticking the note in the water until the ink ran before throwing it away), Mimic took the first watch, letting Starry Skies stretch her legs and get some food. Star did not stay out very long, not really feeling like watching any of the shows or losing what bits she had at the tables. Instead, she simply ate her fill at the buffet and returned, allowing Mimic to enjoy some time out on the ship instead.

After Mimic had returned and the day turned toward evening, the two of them ended up ordering room service for supper. As it grew later still, Star went out to watch the sunset or moon rise. Whether it was because of her bat pony nature or her working for Princess Luna (perhaps a combination of the two), she often tried to watch when day turned to night.

Star also took the night watch, her having taken a nap earlier making it easier to stay awake until morning. At which point, Mimic went and got breakfast, bringing some back for Star to eat before catching up on the sleep she missed.

The next time she awoke, it was as they were reaching the dock. Mimic once again took the disguise of an injured pegasus, hiding the box beneath bandages for her "injured wing." They took their time leaving, letting most of the ponies get off before them.

Not far from the dock was a small train station, which could take ponies to most of the other towns and cities in Equestria, including Canterlot. It was where most of the other ponies were headed. As they walked, Star kept close to Mimic, pretending to support and assist her while keep her body between the "injured wing" and the others around them.

Mimic caught sight of their contacts first, tapping Star and getting her attention to point them out. As the mares moved closer, at least one of the stallions noticed them. He then shifted, one of his wings flickering to reveal a silver bit.

Star and Mimic made their way toward the stallions.

"Excuse me," Star said as they approached. "My friend here could use some help fixing her bandages. Would one of you be so kind of to assist?"

There was a moment of confusion, but one of the stallions did as asked. It was not long before Mimic returned without a bulging wing, and the two pegasus stallions could be seen taking off.

With that, their part of the mission was over. They still had to make their way back to Canterlot, but now they could relax more and enjoy the journey. The wand would be there tonight, and -- barring some unforeseen delay -- the two of them would arrive in the morning.

Home Again Home Again

"Mimic! Star! The Captain wants to see you in her office!"

The two of them stopped, looking at each other with surprise. They had come to check in, letting their bosses know they had returned, and start on their reports. If the Captain wanted to see them, it was more than likely because something had gone wrong.

Following one of the mine tunnels, they made their way deeper into the converted caves that now made up their base. The path twisted and curved as it went deeper into the mountain, lit by the magic glow of some of the remaining crystals or by artificial lights that were bare bulbs hanging from their wires.

Before long, they reached a large wooden door. On it was the symbol of The Shadowbolts -- a five pointed star surrounded by a pair of bat wings -- and a silver name plate with Capt. Trixie Lulamoon etched on it.

Before either of them could knock, the door swung open.

"Come on in. I've been waiting for you two."

Starry Skies and Mimic stepped into the office. Captain Trixie Lulamoon sat at her desk, her hooves busy with a white handkerchief.

"Take a seat," Captain Lulamoon said, still looking at the handkerchief as she tied it into a knot.

Star and Mimic glanced toward each other before sitting down opposite the captain. As they did, Star looked up at the wall where a newspaper article was framed. The title read Mad Mare Trixie Takes Over Town, and below was a picture of her wearing a high collared cape and The Alicorn Amulet, with a smirk on her mouth. Supposedly it had been that event which led to Trixie working for Princess Luna as one of the first Shadowbolts, a chance at redemption for what she had done while under the influence of the amulet and her own anger.

Captain Lulamoon gave the knot a tug, it vanishing as the handkerchief turned red. Tossing it aside, her horn lit up.

"The wand hasn't arrived yet," she told the pair, "and neither have the pegasi that were supposed to bring it in." Turning to look at the two of them, she raised an eyebrow. "I don't supposed you two still have it."

"No ma'am," Mimic answered. "We gave it to the stallions at the train station just like we were told to."

The captain pulled out two pictures and passed them over.

"Were these the ones?"

Mimic and Star each looked at the picture.

"Yes," Mimic said. She pointed at one. "This is the one that took off the bandages and took the box for the wand."

"And did they show you a Lunar Bit?"

"Yes," Star answered. "One of them showed it to me before we approached."

"Did you see them leave?"

"Yes, ma'am," Mimic and Star both said together.

With a sigh, Captain Lulamoon retrieved the pictures and stuck them back in a drawer. She then pulled out a deck of cards and started shuffling them.

"Princess Luna isn't going to be happy about this," she said, more to herself than to the other two ponies. "She was already worried about something going wrong." Her ears pulled back as her jaw clenched. "How would they know what to look for? If there's a leak in this organization, I swear I'm going to--"

A knock at the door kept the two from learning what the captain would do to any creature that betrayed them.

"What?!" Captain Lulamoon yelled.

The door opened as a pony stuck her head inside.

"Captain, we found the missing pegasi. They were unconscious, but alive and with no noticeable injuries. They're in the infirmary being checked over now."

"And the wand?"

"Neither had it on them, and nopony found it in the area they were found."

Captain Lulamoon's horn lit up brighter, the pink magic taking on a redder tone. The cards in her aura sped up, shuffling and mixing faster. As she slammed her hoof against her desk, one of the cards shot out of the deck, sticking into a wooden shelf.

The cards dropped as the magic holding them suddenly vanished. The captain closed her eyes, taking a deep breath and letting it back out.

"Mimic," she growled, "Starry Skies, you two are dismissed. Go file your reports."

The two of them gave a salute and headed for the door as quick as they politely could. As they went, Star looked at the playing card that had been embedded in one of the shelves. It would be better if she could get a better look, but it seemed like a regular playing card.

How much force and precision did it take to embed a piece of paper like that?

"Wow," Mimic said with wide eyes once they were well away from the office. "She was practically seething with anger at the end there. I would hate to be on the receiving end of that."

Considering some of the stories surrounding the captain and what she had just seen, Starry Skies was inclined to agree.

At the end of the day, Starry Skies was looking forward to getting home and sleeping in her own bed. As much as she enjoyed traveling, it was always nice for her to be back home. More so since she never knew how long it would be before she was off again. Plus, it was also kind of boring having to fill out the reports. It left Star feeling tired after all the excitement of her travels had finally worn off.

Slipping out of one of the passageways, she took off, flying up above Canterlot. As she got closer to home, she moved to avoid the pegasi and other bat ponies that were flying about.

Far from the castle and upper-class mansions were the more economic neighborhoods. In one such neighborhood stood the apartment building that was Starry Skies's destination. Smiling at the sight of the familiar building, she shifted to slowly bank around to the mountain facing side. Several other bat ponies flew past her, night guards heading to the castle to start their own shifts. Not far from her, she could see a pegasus in gold armor heading toward the better lit side of the same building. That was what most of her neighbors were: guards that had yet to start families and chose not to stay in the barracks.

Landing on the balcony, Star headed for the door and made her way inside.

"I'm home!" she called out as she stepped inside. Shutting the door behind her, she made her way toward her room. There was no reason to turn the lights on, Star knew her apartment so well she could easily make it through without light or echolocation. Besides, she just wanted to go to bed and get some sleep. Everything else could wait until morning.

Curling up under the blankets and letting the familiarity flow over her, Starry Skies drifted off to sleep.

Starry Skies was just a filly, excited over her first day of school. So much so, that she could barely sit still as she ate breakfast.

"Slow down," said her mother, a unicorn. "Don't want you to make a mess and end up having to clean it up before school."

"Speaking of," her father -- also a unicorn -- interjected, "we should get going if you don't want to be late."

With a squeal of excitement and flap of her wings, Star shot out of her chair -- knocking it over in the process -- and ran for the door. Throwing it open, Star jumped outside.

Hitting the ground, she charged on as fast as she could along the campus walkway. The filly was so excited. She was going to school. She was going to meet a lot of new ponies, learn all sorts of neat stuff, maybe even be like her sister.

There was a loud thud and a burst of pain as she slammed into something. Rainbow colored liquid leaked from her nose as she blinked back the pain, looking at the glowing blue barrier now in front of her.

"What do you think you're doing, young lady?" a stallion asked, standing behind the barrier with his horn glowing.

"Going to school," Star answered. "It's my first day and--"

"You are not going here." The stallion motioned to the building behind him. "This is 'Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns.' The fact you don't fit into the second category alone is enough to keep you from coming here. In other words: no horn, no entry."

He then slammed the doors shut in Starry Skies's face.

Star sat in her room, when she saw some of the neighbor ponies playing around. Grinning (and a fang missing), she threw open her window and launched herself outside.

"Hey, guys," she called out as she glided down toward them. "Can I play too?"

As she landed, the ground gave way beneath her, causing Starry Skies to sink deep into dark water. There was no way to see, and every part of her body was quickly going numb. There was no way of knowing which way was up or down, even if she could move. Heavy chains were clamped to the base of her wings, massive weights attached to the other end, dragging her further and further down. Bubbles escaped her mouth as she tried to breathe. She kicked and struggled, trying to flap, to swim, to do anything. But it only seemed to make her sink faster.

A white light came into view. It grew larger and larger, moving toward her. Eyes wide, Star reached for it.

Massive teeth appeared from behind the light, opening wide as the lantern fish swam toward her. Star kicked with greater urgency, trying to get away, but it was no use.

The jaws shut around her.

Starry Skies stood on a stage, head high and wings spread wide while clad in night guard armor. Around her neck rested a gold medal presented to her by Princess Celestia for Star's courage and valor in protecting Equestria. Before her stood a crowd of ponies, looking at her with awe and clapping their hooves.

Everything suddenly turned dark. Not in the sense that Star was suddenly knocked unconscious, but like something was suddenly blocking out the sun.

Turning to look up, Starry Skies saw a silhouette that looked like a giant alicorn. The figure grew larger and larger until stopping, looking twice as tall as the castle. It held its head wide while it spread its own wings further, blacking out more of the city. As it did, whispers started among the crowd, slowly growing louder.

"Who is she?"

"Why are we here?"

"I don't see what's so special about her. Especially since..."

Before long, the crowd had disappeared, leaving Star standing alone on the stage.

It then turned darker. Star moved to look up and around, trying to find the cause.

Not far from the giant alicorn silhouette now stood the castle from The Crystal Empire. Behind it, The Crystal Heart floated in the air, glowing brightly. Light glittered through the crystalline structure, but none of it made it all the way through.

Star froze, growing tense. The back of her neck prickled.

She was being watched. Some other presence was in her dream.

Starry Skies opened her eyes, wide awake. Closing them, she let out a growl of frustration, punching the pillow. When she had realized that she was dreaming, she had wanted to take control of it, not wake up. That way she could find out what it was that had made her feel like she was being spied on. Star knew it was possible to control a dream once aware of it. She had done it before, but with the presence of either Princess Luna or Princess Nightmare Moon. The few times she had tried on her own, it had ended up just like this.

Although, she was not entirely upset. Truth be told, she was grateful to be away from those dreams. It was odd, she had not had any like those in years.

With a sigh and quick glance at the clock, Star tossed the blankets aside and got up. She did not feel like going back to sleep. There was an all night diner not far from the place. She could go there and grab a bite, maybe some coffee as well. Then she could start going through the mail that had accumulated while out, see if there was anything of interest.

Heading back to her balcony, Starry Skies took off and flew into the pre-dawn sky.

A Noble Invitation

One particular piece of mail stuck out from the rest of them. It was an ivory colored envelope with golden edging. Inside was a card of heavy stock with a similar color and design. On the front of the card was three words written in large, looping calligraphy with gold colored ink.

Inside was an easier to read text written in black ink.

At the bottom of the card was an image of a green fireball, and a silver tiara in a pink circle.

With that, Starry Skies was on her way to Ponyville. After a quick stop at the office to fill them in and finishing her breakfast, Star packed and took the next train.

A part of it was work related. With his being an assistant to one princess, familial-like relationship with two others, his own standing as a hero both in Equestria and The Crystal Empire and his being the dragon-pony liason, Spike was practically a noble in his own right: a prince in all but official title (or lord if the stories she heard were true). While nowhere near as impressive, Diamond Tiara was a part of one of the richest and most influential families in Ponyville.

That alone would mean the wedding could possibly be threatened. The daughter of a wealthy business stallion and fiance of a highly influential being would be a very tempting target for kidnapping, blackmail, or replacement. Then there was the guest list which included: the princesses of Equestria (and likely Luna's daughters); The royal family of The Crystal Empire; Princess Twilight Sparkle, and The Elements of Harmony. That did not even include others like friends and families of various wealth and popularity from all across the nation (if not further). All of them in one location would make it prime for abduction, assassination, or espionage.

Plus, weddings were especially important to Princess Luna after what happened during Princess Cadance and Shining Armor's.

Then there was the personal aspect of the thing. Part of the reason she would be the perfect agent to be there: she was expected. Her arrival -- even early -- would not draw too many questions. It was pretty much expected she would show up. May as well try to keep things safe for everyone involved at the same time.

As she rode, Star kept shifting in her seat. She was filled with a combination of excitement and anxiety. She was thrilled at the prospect, but also dreading it horribly. One part of her wanted to rush to Ponyville as quick as she could, but the other wanted to flee and and get as far away, quick as possible.

She really should buy something that she could fiddle with in her hooves. It was something she always thought about at times like this, that she should get something that she can just mess with and burn off nervous energy. Unfortunately, she never thought about it until she needed it, and completely forgot about it while going about her day.

Instead, Star sat in her seat, staring out the window and watching the landscape go by.

Fortunately (or unfortunately) it was not a very long ride. Not even two hours later, and she was arriving at the station for Ponyville. She and several others disembarked, with Star taking her time. Standing there, she let her gaze drift, looking around at the small town. With a sigh, she stepped off the platform and started walking.

The best idea would be to go straight for her sister's house, see who in her family was here already, get settled in and see about keeping an eye on everything going on in regards to the wedding.

Star made her way to Barnyard Bargains. Walking up and down the aisles, she looked to see what all they had for sale. Some of the items seemed interesting, and others kind of odd. The sight of it all also made her realize she forgot to get a wedding present. Maybe she could sent a message to Mimic and have her pick something up in Canterlot. Now that Star thought about it, that gave Mimic a reason to be around Ponyville during the wedding in case anything happened and her help was needed.

After Barnyard Bargains, Starry Skies considered going to the open market and seeing what was for sale. However, the sight of certain ponies made her hurry along.

"Star?" a voice called out. "Starry Skies?"

Standing not far from her was a pegasus stallion close to her own age with creamy tan coat and chocolate brown mane. A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he approached.

"H...Hi Pound," Star said, ears pulling back and face heating up. "Nice to see you too. You look good."

"Thanks," Pound Cake said as he struck a pose, puffing out his chest and spreading his wings. "Work keeps me in pretty good shape." He then folded them back up.

"So what brings you here?"

"A wedding," Star answered. "I figured I would come early and see my family. Maybe even see about crashing the bachelorette party." She grinned, letting out a chuckle.

"Well Twilight and some of the others are at Rarity's boutique. Somepony broke in and trashed the place."

"Is Rarity okay?"

"Distraught, but not hurt or anything," Pound Cake replied. "I was actually heading to Sugarcube Corner to pick up lunch for everyone. Want to come with me?"

"Thanks, but I think I'll head straight on over there," Star said. "Although maybe we can hang out later."

"Unless something comes up," Pound said with a wink. "I'll see you in a bit." He then flew off, heading toward his family's bakery.

Well no point in putting it off any longer, Star thought with a sigh. If something was happening at the boutique, she should be there. Hopefully it would be nothing, just some vandal, or an isolated incident that would not happen again. But if that was not the case, then she should get as much information about it as possible. At the very least, she might be able to share something with the guards to help them out.

At most, she might have to step in and try to keep The Elements from getting involved or the wedding being ruined.

Taking off, Starry Skies flew up above the streets and buildings. It was a lot easier than in Canterlot since most of the buildings were only one or two stories tall. She let herself drift slightly as she went, enjoying the open air as she headed straight for Carousel Boutique.

It did not take long before the recognizable circular building came into view. Slowly, Star came in lower, moving closer to the building and circling around it. Not far from it were some other ponies that were passing by, looking at the place as they went by. Not too surprising since most -- if not all -- of the town would probably be talking about what happened by now. The only sign she could immediately make out that anything had happened was when she was nearly landing, finding that two of the windows in front had been broken. As she walked up to the door, Star noticed broken glass lying on the ground.

Stopping at the door, Starry Skies closed her eyes and took a deep breath, slowly letting it out. Shifting her legs, she lowered herself to slouch slightly. Her wings twitched at her side before settling back down. One ear flicked before relaxing. A hint of a smile tugged at her lips as she opened her eyes.

Star pushed the door open and poked her head in.

"Hello?"

"I'm sorry," a voice called out, "I'm afraid we're not open to the public at this time."

"That's okay," Star called back, moving further into the shop. "I'm not here to shop anyways."

At that, several ponies in the room stopped and turned to look at her. On one particular face, recognition slowly sank in, followed by a grin and fluttering of wings.

Star suddenly found herself caught up in a tight purple hug.

"Star!"

Making the smile on her face larger, Starry Skies shifted to return the hug. Her body turned to get her wings free as she wrapped her forelegs around the larger mare.

"Glad to see you too, Twi."

"What are you doing here?" Twilight Sparkle asked as she broke the hug.

"Well I came to Ponyville because I got the invitation to Spike's wedding, and I came here because Pound told me what happened."

Star stepped back and turned to Rarity before asking, "Are you okay?"

"I wasn't home when whomever did this was here," Rarity said, pushing back her long purple mane, "but my shop is utterly demolished, to say nothing of what all was stolen. It will take me days to get everything replaced and properly organized." She let out a sigh. "I may have to work at Canterlot Carousel to get everything ready for the wedding."

"Or you could use the castle," Twilight suggested. "It doesn't have everything you need, but you can at least stay in Ponyville and watch the repairs here."

"Well I will still have to go and see what I can collect to replace."

"What was stolen?" Star asked, looking around at the place. It had been thoroughly trashed. The mirrors had been knocked over, shards of glass left on the floor, which Fluttershy was already sweeping up. Drawers had been yanked open and strewn about, leaving what looked like ribbons, bows, and other accessories scattered.

Something was missing. Starry Skies could not quite place what, but she was certain about it.

"Well," Rarity replied, "so far: my collection of jewels and gemstones for decorating my creations; the bolt of gold fabric I had already prepared; the spools of thread from The Crystal Empire; and, strangely, three of my sewing dummies."

Star's jaw clenched as it clicked: that was what was missing. Rarity always had two or three dummies in the main room, normally showing off different outfits that had been made. In all the mess it was hard to notice, but there were none in here at the moment.

But why? All the other things mentioned were items that could easily be sold for a lot of money. Not a lot of ponies would be interested in buying a sewing dummy. So why take them?

"Well, I'm here to lend an extra set of hooves with clean-up if you need it," Star offered with a smile, which quickly faded. "But... could I use your bathroom first? Preferably the one upstairs?"

"Oh certainly," Rarity replied. "Upstairs and second door on the left."

"Thanks. I'll be back in a second."

Slipping past the other ponies, Starry Skies made her way to the stairs and up them quickly. As soon as she reached the top, she stopped, looking around. From everything she could see, the upstairs were untouched. Why would whoever was responsible not come up here? Why trash the downstairs and not upstairs? Rarity had quite a collection of jewelry, and a lot of her own garments. So why not take anything from up here?

Unless...

Taking a deep breath, Star began letting out ultrasonic squeaks. After each one, she would prick her ears up and listen as intently as possible, trying to pick up anything odd. Slowly, she walked along the hall, making her way from room to room, letting off squeak after squeak and listening to each return.

Nothing. Either there were no listening devices upstairs, or Star simply could not pick them up with her echolocation. There were simply too many places for her to search by hoof and eye. It would take her too long to look.

Putting the possibility aside for now, Star made her way to the bathroom, then back downstairs to help.

Stake Out

After cleaning up the boutique and fixing what they could, they all decided to end for the day. Rarity opted to stay at her parents' house while most of the others went to their own homes.

"STAR!" a voice bellowed out as soon as Starry Skies stepped into the castle. Forcing herself not to react, she let herself get "surprised" and pounced, quickly pulled up into a big, purple, scaly hug.

Putting a grin on her face, she shifted to return the hug. Her forelegs wrapped around the dragon's body, squeezing it as hard as she could manage.

"Glad to see you too, Spike." Her eyes narrowed as her grin turned into a smirk. "So, finally settling down, huh? Somepony decided to make an honest dragon out of you?"

A chuckle escaped Spike as he let Star go.

"Well, you know me," he said. "Always been one for the domestic life. Settle down, have a family and all that."

"Which is going to be a shame for Twilight. Means she's going to have to start cooking for herself."

"Hey!" Twilight interjected. "I can cook just fine."

The room turned quiet and Starry Skies and Spike both turned to look at Twilight Sparkle. With their attention on her, she shifted, her wings flickering at her side. Twilight slid one hoof across the floor of the castle.

"Okay," she finally said. "So there may have been one or two... small problems with it..."

"Although from what I recall," Spike said as he let his gaze shift back to Star, "you don't exactly have room to talk."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Star declared, turning her head away from him and looking up.

"Really? Because I very clearly remember a certain bat pony filly trying to cook, and somehow managed the bottom out of a frying pan."

"You must be confusing me for somepony else, because I don't remember anything like that happening."

"Okay," Twilight called out, stepping forward. "I think that's enough about our cooking abilities or lack thereof. Is Pumpkin still here?"

"She left a little while ago," Spike answered.

"Well I should check her assignment and see how she did," Twilight said as she headed further into the castle.

"And while she does that," Starry Skies said as turned her attention back to Spike, "we are going to the kitchen, where you are going to tell me about how you finally proposed to Diamond Tiara."

"Actually," Spike replied with a chuckle, "you know how you said she was making an honest dragon out of me? Well..."

It was not long before the three of them were together, with most of the talking being done by Spike as most of the conversation was about his relationship and the upcoming wedding. From time to time, Twilight would look from her work or add a comment, and some times Star would tell a little about her "life" back in Canterlot.

"Well it's getting kind of late," Star said, getting up and stretching out. "I'm going to head on up to bed. I'll see you two in the morning."

With calls of "good night" and "sweet dreams" following her, Star made her way upstairs and to one of the extra bedrooms. Once inside, she shut the door and locked it. Her body shifted as she let out a sigh.

Taking the saddlebags off, she turned one upside down. One wing reached down, slipping under one flap to grab the bottom, then gave a yank. The snaps gave way with audible metallic sound as the hidden compartment was opened. Star pulled out her uniform and started putting it on. Once dressed, she walked to the window and threw it open.

It was a calm and mild spring night. There was a sliver of moon in the sky, and a scattering of clouds. It was not the perfect night for what Starry Skies was planning (which would have been no moon at all and heavy cloud cover), but it was not the worst (perfectly clear with a bright full moon out).

Once she was certain that there were no ponies around to see her, Starry Skies pulled her goggles down and launched herself. As she cleared the window, she threw her wings open and straightened out. Her fall slowed, turning into a glide low to the ground. Once out of the immediate vicinity of the castle, Star started to flap, climbing up higher and above the buildings. Her mouth opened slightly, using her echolocation to make sure that there were no ponies flying in front of her.

Star kept low as she flew, staying close to the rooftops and buildings, using the shadows wherever she could. She made her way across the town, keeping out of side when necessary as she made her way to Carousel Boutique.

It seemed unlikely that something else was going to happen there, but it was still a possibility. Besides, there was too much that did not fit for her. Like why take the dummies, and why not bother going upstairs? Most of all, were they aware that Rarity was not home at the time, or was it simply luck? If they had known, then they would have been watching the place ahead of time. As such, it seemed unlikely that they would just be breaking in to steal a bunch of random objects to sell for quick cash. It also left the possibility that they were looking for something specific, and very well might come back to keep searching.

Landing on the roof of a nearby building, Star moved to the edge to where she could see the boutique. She settled down and started to wait, watching the building and listening for anything strange.

Time passed. Slowly. More so because there was little for Star to do. She had to keep focus on the boutique. If she let herself get too distracted then she might miss something. That was assuming that anything did happen. As the minutes continued on, Star kept her post, shifting only to stretch out a muscle or two and keep herself from getting too comfortable and dozing off.

As she continued her watch, a noise suddenly reached Starry Skies. It sounded like something was flying fast.

Before she could fully figure out what it meant, something slammed into Starry Skies from behind. Her wings flicked out to keep her from falling if she got knocked off the building. Twisting her body, she rolled with the impact, trying to minimize injury and hopefully get a glimpse of who or what blindsided her.

Star managed to catch sight of light blue and rainbows.

"Ha!" a raspy feminine voice called out. "Knew I would find something if I came back."

Star's teeth ground as her jaw clenched. Why her? Why did it have to be her of all pegasi?

"So what are you doing here, huh?" Rainbow Dash asked as she leaned in, nose practically touching as she glared down with narrowed eyes. "Are you supposed to be the look out? Am I going to find some of your friends in Rarity's shop?"

"You got it wrong," Star said, dropping her voice.

"Yeah, right." Rainbow rolled her eyes. "It's just a coincidence that you happen to be standing up here in a Shadowbolts' uniform and watching the boutique."

It was pretty clear to Starry Skies that this was already a waste. Rainbow Dash had come to a conclusion and there was almost no way that Star could talk her out of it. Outrunning her was not an option: Dash was much faster and more agile. Star would easily be chased down and tackled again. Actively fighting Rainbow Dash was not exactly an option either. Being a Bearer of Harmony and Wonderbolt, Rainbow Dash was by no means an innocent bystander or civilian. At the same time, she was not actually a criminal or evil pony. Just stupidly stubborn some times.

Really, her best option was try to outwit the mare. Get out from beneath her and escape enough to get back to the castle unnoticed.

Rainbow Dash reached down, trying to grab a hold of Star's mask.

Star grabbed Rainbow Dash and pulled her in close, pressing their lips together. She could feel the other mare tense with surprise, hear the wings snapping open in shock. Star pulled closer, shifting her body. Her back legs stroked along the underside of Rainbow's stomach.

There was a pop as the kiss broke.

"Sorry," Star purred out, "but you know the rules about secret identities."

She then shoved up hard with her hind legs, getting a yelp of surprise from Rainbow Dash as she was knocked off.

Star rolled over and lunged for the edge, diving off it. Snapping her wings open, she pulled up with less than an inch from the ground to spare, and banked around the corner of the building into an alley.

"HEY!" Rainbow Dash shouted from the roof, taking off.

Starry Skies dove behind some trash cans and dropped to the ground. Pressing close, she peeked out, looking for her potential chaser.

A rainbow colored contrail shot across the opening.

Star stayed where she was for a moment, slowly counting to twenty (and wiping her mouth: of all the ways to distract a pony, that was not one she enjoyed using -- especially on a mare nearly twice her age). When she reached the number and saw no additional signs of Rainbow Dash, Starry Skies slipped out of her hiding spot and walked along the side of the building. She kept her head low as she went, ears up and eyes focused to catch any sign of another pony. Especially the one she was trying to elude.

Not far from where Star stood was a cart, currently empty and with no ponies around it. Star ran for it as quick as she could, dropping low and skidding to a stop underneath.

Cover. Especially useful when dealing with an impulsive pegasus that tended to search from the sky. A tendency to look directly down from above meant forgetting that sometimes there were things under other things, such as a bat pony hidden beneath a cart.

A strange idea came to Star. Lifting herself up, she pressed her back against the underside, then moved forward to brace her shoulders against the front axle. Her wings spread open and lifted up, giving her more surface contact with the rough wood. With a grunt, she then pushed forward.

There was a faint creak as the wheels started to turn. As Star pushed, growling with effort, the cart began to creep forward. The creak faded as the wheel began a slow, steady movement. Before long, the cart was moving as Star continued to walk and push it along.

Once it was moving, the task became a lot easier.

At a cross street, Starry Skies gave the cart a hard shove, then bolted out from under it and for some bales of hay. She dove into it as the cart continued on, making it across the intersection before slowing to a stop.

There was still no sign of Rainbow Dash. Hopefully she would be searching some distant part of town by now, nowhere near Star or Twilight's castle. Unfortunately, it would be better if Starry Skies kept to moving on hoof just in case.

Slipping out of the hay bales, she made her way to the next corner and peaked around, making sure there was nopony around.

After catching a glimpse of somepony, Star pulled her head back. Slowly, she moved to see who was there without being noticed.

A gangly unicorn stallion stood stiffly in front of a building, in what was most likely an awkward attempt at looking casual. There was a bright glow of magic surrounding his horn.

"Ah-ha! Fou-"

Starry Skies turned around and grabbed Rainbow Dash, pinning her to the wall and shoving a hoof in her mouth.

"Sshh," she hissed out. Pressing close, she tilted her head and listened. When there were no sounds of hooves either coming toward them or running away, Star slowly pulled her hoof away.

"Keep quiet. Something's happening over there."

Rainbow Dash's eyes narrowed and ears pulled back as she glared at Star. Her forelegs crossed in front of her chest, and she let out an audible snort, but did not say anything.

Starry Skies moved closer to the edge and peaked out again.

The stallion was still there, half turned away from them now. His ears were perked up, with one facing in the direction of Star and Dash. The aura of magic around his horn was larger and brighter, pulsing with concentration.

"You live here," Star said to Rainbow Dash. "Do you know who lives there?"

Rainbow Dash stood there for a moment, staring at Star with a scrunched up face. Finally she moved to push past Starry Skies, poking her own head around the corner and looking to see what was there.

Instead of answering, Rainbow Dash jumped out from behind the corner and stood in the middle of the street, spreading her wings wide.

"Hey!" she called out. "What are you doing?"

Star clenched her jaw as she stifled her urge to growl in frustration. She had just wanted to know whose house the stallion was standing outside of, not give up the element of surprise. Especially since he seemed to be a (rather bad) lookout of some kind, and there was no way of knowing how many other ponies were in the house.

"Listen puppet," the stallion called out in a high-pitched, nasally voice, "I don't want to hurt you."

"Yeah, right," Rainbow Dash huffed, taking a step forward. "What can one scrawny stallion like you do?"

Starry Skies flew up above the building she was against and landed on the roof. She moved along it, walking closer to where the stallion stood.

"Well then it's a good thing I'm not performing alone," the stallion declared. His horn then flared brighter with magic.

From the building he was standing in front of, three figures made their way out the front door.

The sight made Star gasp out, eyes wide. The figures that came out of the building looked roughly like ponies. They were about the same size and general shape. Except they were missing three things: manes; tails; and most importantly, faces. Each one had a saddlebag attached to it, the flaps hanging open.

"What the buck?!" Rainbow Dash cried out. "Are those Rarity's sewing dummies?"

One of the things charged forward, running at the shocked pegasus. It slammed its head into her chest, sending her backwards with a loud grunt.

For a moment -- just a brief one -- Starry Skies considered doing nothing. She could just stay where she was and watch what happened next. After all, the stallion had no idea she was there. From her vantage point, she would be able to observe whatever happened next and collect more data on the stallion as well as his abilities with the sewing dummies. Plus, a sadistic little part of her liked the idea of seeing Rainbow Dash get beat up. The pegasus was one of Twilight's friends, and Star had nothing against her personally, but at times like this, her impulsiveness could be very irritating. Maybe a few smacks would get her to think before acting. Plus, she would probably deny needing any help in the first place.

But Starry Skies did not want Rainbow Dash to actually get hurt. Plus, both Twilight and Princess Luna would be disappointed about it. Having a pony that was a friend to the princesses, hero of Equestria, Element of Harmony, and Wonderbolt get beat up without doing anything would not do well for her career.

Launching herself from the rooftop, Starry Skies flew at one of the three dressing dummies. Her hooves slammed into it hard, sending it into one of the walls with a thud. She then twisted her body hard, driving her hoof into the thing's throat.

There was a soft thump as the punch sank in until hitting the wooden core. Being essentially a pony-sized doll, there were no organs or need to breathe. As such, punching them in the throat did no good... as were most strikes that were supposed to disable an opponent.

The dummy reared on its hind legs and slammed a front one into Star, striking her in the nose and sending her stumbling backwards.

Starry Skies inhaled hard through her nose before spitting out a bit of blood. For a creature with no muscles, it could hit pretty hard.

"You're a bit early for Nightmare Night there," the stallion said, "but I think I can give you a special performance."

One of the dummies charged at Star. Dropping low, she slammed into its chest and shoved hard, pushing it back. At the same time, Rainbow Dash was grabbing one of the others by the neck, throwing it against the wall. It bounced off, kicking a hind leg out to hit her in the cheek. The one that Star had hit raised up and brought both front legs down, slamming into her back and knocking her down onto the ground. As she dropped, she had enough thought to lash out with her wing, the nail on the tip managing to catch the material and create a small tear. Disappointingly, it was only superficial damage.

Meanwhile, Starry Skies was berating herself. She had been foolish. Stupid. Idiotic and impulsive. Why did she go after the stupid dummy? It was nothing but a bunch of fabric animated by magic. If she had gone after the unicorn right off the bat, she would have been able to hit him while having the element of surprise. At best, it would have knocked him unconscious and this whole thing would have been done. At worst, it would have at least broken his concentration enough that he could have lost control of the dummies.

Now he would be expecting them to try something, and was holding one dummy back. Probably for defensive reasons.

With a flap of her wings, Star shot at the sewing dummy and slammed into it. Pushing hard, she shoved it into one of the walls.

A tinkling sound caught her attention. Looking down, she found that the saddle bag had fallen off, bits, a bracelet and a necklace pouring out.

One wing reached down to sweep the bits and jewelry back into the bag before grabbing a hold of it.

"Rainbow Dash!" Star called out. "Catch!" She then threw the bag to the pegasus.

Rainbow Dash flew up and caught the bag, wrapping her front legs round it and looking down as it pressed against her chest.

"Hey!" the stallion shouted. "Give that back."

Starry Skies dropped the dummy she had and flew to the one that had been fighting Rainbow Dash. Instead of trying to hit it, she simply flew by and grabbed the saddle bags off it, throwing it to the pegasus as well.

"Stop that!" the stallion yelled, stomping a hoof. The two dummies that had been attacking now turned their attention to Starry Skies, chasing after her.

Smirking slightly to herself, Star flew at the third dummy, getting ready to grab its saddle bag as well. The stallion must have been expecting that to happen, because the dummy dropped below Star's grasp...

Allowing her to fly directly at him instead.

Starry Skies pulled back one of her forelegs and threw it forward hard, putting all her weight and momentum into it. The hoof struck the stallion on the jaw, the entire head tilting with the impact and causing him to spin before falling to the ground. Before he could recover, Star whacked his horn. There was a tingle along her foreleg as the magical energy was disrupted. The dummies stopped where they were, one falling over onto its side.

"Alright," Star said as she took off. "I believe you can handle it from here citizen. Don't want that criminal getting away before the guards arrive, now do we." She gave Rainbow Dash a salute, then flew off as quick as she could. Shouting followed after her, but it sounded like Rainbow Dash was not giving chase.

With a sigh of relief, Star made her way back toward the castle.

Pumpkin for Information

Dear Mimic,

You will not believe what is going on around here. The same day I arrive, somepony had broken into a shop and ransacked the place. Took a bunch of valuables too. At times like this, it would be nice if there was a pony like Mare-Do-Well around. Hopefully whatever happened was just some isolated vandals and nothing to worry about. Hate for something to ruin the wedding.

Speaking of the wedding, I have two favors to ask of you. The first is a wedding present for Spike and Diamond Tiara. There is a place in Canterlot called "Crystal Creations" which makes crystal sculptures. I am including a letter of instructions for what I want and pictures of the couple in a second envelope. You may have to put a down payment on the commission. If so, I promise to pay you back.

Second is that I realized last night that I could use a couple things if I'm going to be here for a while, especially if I end up having to do some remote work (which it looks like I may have to do). You have a pretty good idea of what I might need, so I leave it to you and the experts. I would also greatly appreciate it if you could bring the stuff yourself. You can stay in the castle for the night, and I bet Twilight will even let you stay for the wedding.

Hope to see you soon,
Starry Skies.

After blowing gently on the paper to make sure the ink was dry, Starry Skies folded up the letter and stuck it into an envelope, as well as a smaller one. Once sealed up, she made her way out the room and downstairs, heading out to the mailbox. If everything went well, the letter would be picked up with the morning mail, in Canterlot for the evening, and Mimic would be in Ponyville either tomorrow or the next day -- depending on how things went at Crystal Creations and with getting the "supplies."

With that done, Star headed back inside and made her way to the dining room, looking forward to breakfast.

"I'm telling you," she heard Rainbow Dash saying, "this mare was huge. Like, she was as tall as a timberwolf, and her legs were as thick as a filly's body. She had a coat as black as night, big, sharp teeth like a shark, and these glowing red eyes. An--"

"Hold on," Twilight cut in. "You said that she was dressed in a Shadowbolts uniform and had goggles."

"So?"

"So, if she had a full body costume on, and was wearing goggles, how could you possibly know her coat and eye color?"

"Come on Twi, don't be ridiculous."

"Yes," a third voice said, "that's the part of the whole story that's ridiculous."

Star could practically hear the eye-rolling.

In the dining room sat Twilight Sparkle, Spike, Rainbow Dash, and a yellow coated unicorn mare with a bright orange mane. They each had plates of pancakes in front of them, and there was a large stack still on the table.

"What's going on?" Star asked as she made her way toward the table, grabbing an empty plate and two of the pancakes.

"Rainbow Dash was just telling us about her adventure last night," the yellow mare -- Pumpkin Cake -- answered. "Supposedly, she met a giant bat pony in a Shadowbolts costume and a unicorn that used sewing dummies like puppets."

"I did!" declared Rainbow Dash. "He called himself 'The Marionette' and had, like, a dozen dummies working for him."

"Last time, you said was five," Pumpkin replied.

"Plus Rarity was only missing three," Twilight Sparkle added.

Rainbow Dash shifted, crossing her forelegs over her chest. Her eyes narrowed and ears pulled back.

"I'll show you," she growled out. She then threw up a hoof. "I am going to catch that bat pony, and find out her secret identity."

"You can't do that," Spike said. "Superheros have secret identities for a reason. You could be putting her friends and family at risk, or at least yourself if her enemies find out you know. They could start trying to catch you to make you tell them."

"That's even assuming you can figure out who it is," Pumpkin mumbled.

Rainbow Dash turned to her and asked, "what's that supposed to mean?"

Pumpkin Cake's horn lit up with a pale blue aura of magic as she grabbed some more pancakes and covered them in syrup. She then took a bite before explaining.

"There are twenty bat ponies here in Ponyville, nine of which are mares and none of which match your description. Then there are the ones living in nearby towns or cities, like Canterlot which has a large population due to the Night Guards. And that doesn't even include the possibility of it being a Flutterbat situation."

"Flutterbat situation?" Star asked, raising an eyebrow. "What's that mean?"

There was a moment of quiet as Twilight, Spike, and Rainbow Dash looked at each other. Twilight Sparkle shifted, wings flickering at her side as she let out a little cough.

"I... I told you about that," Twilight said. "No reason to go over the whole thing again."

"Oh come on," Star cried out. "It sounds like it's really interesting." She dropped her ears and made her eyes wide. "Please big sister?" Poking her lower lip out, she made it quiver.

Twilight Sparkle cringed, grimacing as her ears pulled back. Star could see the conflict on her sister's face, not wanting to talk about it, but also wanting to do what she was asked by her little sister. Just a few more seconds and--

"Spike!"

-- it was all ruined. The sound of another voice causing all of them to turn toward the doorway and see a pink earth pony with white and pale violet mane.

"There you are," she said as she trotted toward them. "I've been looking for you."

"Good morning Di," Spike said with a smile. "Want some pancakes?"

The mare -- Diamond Tiara -- looked at the plate of breakfast food. Her eyes went a little wider as she took in the sight, her tongue licking at her lips. After several seconds, she gave a shake of her head, turning her attention back to her fiance.

"Can't," she said. "We don't have the time. If we want to catch the train, we need to leave now."

"Train?" Spike asked as he stood up. "What do we need to catch the train for?"

"We have a fitting, and because of what happened, it's at Canterlot Carousel now." Diamond moved around the table. "Then we have one last cake tasting this afternoon, so we need to catch the morning train to be back in time for that. Which means we need to get going. So move it, scale-tail." She gave him a gentle headbutt on the shoulder.

"Alright, alright," Spike said with a chuckle. "I'm moving, I'm moving." He headed for the door.

"Sorry for interrupting your breakfast," Diamond said as she turned to the rest of them. "We seem to have a lot we still need to do and not much time to do it in."

"It's fine," Twilight said with a wave of her hoof. "See you when you get back."

Once Spike and Diamond Tiara left, Starry Skies returned her attention to Twilight in hopes of trying to get the Flutterbat story out of her.

"Speaking of Rarity's shop," Twilight continued, "We should go back and see if we can help fix it up. Pumpkin, why don't you take the day off? You and Starry Skies go out and do something fun."

"Really?" Pumpkin asked. "Are you sure? Is that a good idea? I mean..."

"It'll be fine," Twilight Sparkle said calmly. "Besides, everypony could use a break and time with friends."

Getting up from her spot, Twilight walked over to give Pumpkin Cake a hug, then did the same to Starry Skies.

"Have fun you two, and don't cause too much trouble." Twilight grinned. "I would hate to have my student and baby sister arrested. Come on Dash."

Rainbow Dash let out a sigh. Grabbing a bunch of pancakes, she shoved them into her mouth before flying after Twilight as fast as she could.

Starry Skies and Pumpkin Cake were left alone.

"So," Star said as she returned to eating her breakfast, "can you tell me about the 'Flutterbat' thing?"

"Well I wasn't actually there," Pumpkin answered, "but I've heard multiple versions of it." She took another bite of her own pancakes.

"With almost all of them, it starts when vampire fruit bats showed up at Sweet Apple Acres..."

The two of them finished their meal as Pumpkin told the story of how Twilight accidentally turned Fluttershy into a fruit sucking bat pony. For some reason, Star could not help but laugh at it a little. Just the image of the normally shy pegasus being a fierce and terrifying creature with sharp fangs was so strange, it was silly.

"Hey," Star said after they had finished breakfast, "are the vampire fruit bats still there?"

"I...think so?" Pumpkin replied. "Why?"

"Could we go see them? It would be a good walk, and I don't think I've ever seen them before."

Pumpkin Cake shifted in her seat, thinking. Her ears flickered as her face scrunched up. She moved her head back and forth before finally nodding.

"Yeah, sure," she said. "I wouldn't mind. Haven't really seen them much myself either."

After finishing, the two of them left to make their way to Sweet Apple Acres. They walked through the town, Pumpkin occasionally greeting or waving to a pony in passing, but never stopping to talk to any of them. Before long, they were walking along a dirt road leading out of town and toward the apple farm.

"So now that we're out away from everypony and where we can't be overheard," Star said as they continued, "what's it like being Twilight's student?"

Pumpkin's ears twitched as her mouth pressed tight. She glanced at Star then at the road.

"It's... fine..."

Stepping closer, Star reached out a wing and placed it on Pumpkin. She moved to look at her better, raising an eyebrow.

"Why the reluctance?" Star asked. "Is something wrong? If you're having trouble--"

"No," Pumpkin cut in. "No. Nothing like that. Twilight's a pretty good teacher even if she can get obsessive about her lists and neurotic about things, and the lessons are tough, but in kind of a fun challenging way that makes it feel like I really accomplished something when I finally complete it."

"So what's wrong?"

Pumpkin stopped walking and bit her lip. Her entire body was slightly tense and her tail flickered with nervous energy. She then slumped and let out a sigh before walking again.

"It's... kind of hard for me to talk about." She sucked her lip and took a breath. "Do you know what 'Chaos Touched' means?"

"Yes," Starry Skies answered. "As a bat pony that was born into a family that had been almost entirely unicorns, I am aware of what Chaos Touched means."

"Oh, right," Pumpkin said with a grimace. "I didn't think about that."

"It's fine," Star said, waving a wing. "Although I take it that you're asking because you and your brother are?"

The question made Pumpkin Cake gasp, stopping where she was and looking at Star with wide eyes.

"You knew?"

"I had figured as much," Star answered. "Nopony actually told me, but Ponyville was where Discord caused the most trouble after his escape. That combined with the fact that both your parents are earth ponies and you are close to one of The Elements of Harmony made it seem pretty likely."

Although, that was not the entire truth. Yes, she had suspected that the Cake twins were Chaos Touched -- the term used for ponies that had been somehow altered in the womb by Discord's magic -- when she had first met them, but she had actually gotten confirmation from Princess Luna about it.

"Well it didn't just make me a unicorn," Pumpkin said. "It also... made my magic like his I guess. It's pretty strong, but also really unstable, like it wants to do its own thing." She sighed and rubbed at her forehead. "Basically I have to be highly disciplined and vigilant, or risk losing control and having weird things happen."

"How weird?" Star asked.

"It varies, but has gotten less dangerous. Last week I had a bad dream, and turned my bed into a giant sundae."

"Were you able to change it back?"

"Pinkie ate it before I could try."

"Oh," Starry Skies said softly, not really sure what to say. "Sorry?"

"Thanks," Pumpkin said. "Although honestly, sometimes I just wish I had been born an earth pony."

It was a feeling that Star could sort of sympathize with. Not being an earth pony, precisely, but being the same type of pony as her parents and most of her family had been.

Moving closer to Pumpkin, she wrapped a wing around the other mare.

"Come on. Let's go see the vampire fruit bats." She then grinned. "And maybe we can see about getting a couple slices of apple pie while we're there." She gave Pumpkin a wink.

A small smile pulled at Pumpkin Cake's lips. She gave a small nod, and the two of them continued on their way.

As they followed the road and approached one of the many rivers around the town, Starry Skies thought she heard something. It was hard to make out, but it sounded like... singing?

"Do you hear that?"

"Hear what?" Pumpkin asked, turning to look at Star curiously.

Head up and ears forward, Star followed the sound. It was so pretty. She had to find out where it was coming from. Even if it meant that she would have to leave the road.

The sound -- the music -- grew louder, clearer, stronger. It was such a wonderful tune. There was also something familiar about it, but Star could not quite place what it was. It was actually hard to really think about anything clearly. It was all kind of fuzzy. Star was finding it hard to do much of anything. She just felt... the need... for...

After a few more steps, Starry Skies stumbled to one side an fell over. Fortunately, the grass was thick and soft, which also made it a very nice spot to curl up.

As Star felt her eyelids growing heavy, she noticed something yellow falling onto the ground next to her.

Shady Dreams

Starry Skies sat up in her bed, back in her home in Canterlot. Rolling out of bed and standing up, she looked around. Her mouth pressed tight and ears pulled back as her eyes narrowed, studying the room.

"This isn't right," she mumbled to herself. "I shouldn't be here."

With a flap of her wings, Star took off and flew for the door. The frame stretched wider, allowing her to pass through without trouble.

Outside her room, the place started to change. A part of it was the main portion of her apartment, but it shifted to the dining area of Sugarcube Corner. The durable brown carpet gave way to tile, pale blue walls shifted into the brightly decorated gingerbread. Where the two rooms merged was a table that had two figures at it. One was a pony that Star recognized. The other was... odd. It looked like an inky blackness in the basic shape of a unicorn mare, with glowing gold spots where the eyes would be.

"Star?" Pumpkin asked. "Where are we?"

"We're dreaming," Star answered, moving closer. "That's why half of the place is Sugarcube Corner, and half of it is my home in Canterlot." She turned to the black figure. "And I'm guessing that you have something to do with this."

"Correct," the black mare said gently. "I figured that the familiar locations would make you more comfortable. Would you care for some tea? Or maybe a snack cake?"

"No thank you. I would rather we get to who you are and why you are here."

"You may call me Sleep Thief," the mare stated. "As for why I'm here, it's because we all have several things in common."

"Oh?" Pumpkin said, raising an eyebrow as she took a hold of a donut.

"Indeed. For example, we all don't exactly fit in with those around us because of something that happened before we were even born."

"Really?" Star said, raising an eyebrow. She made a mental note to tell this to Princess Luna as soon as possible. She would also ask Pumpkin about this later, or have Pumpkin ask Twilight. As far as Starry Skies knew, only the princess and her daughters were able to dream walk. If it was not a type of spell regular unicorns could do, then both of the Twilight and Luna would be interested in hearing about this. Plus, either Princess Luna knew about Sleep Thief and would be able to help identify her in the physical world, or she was unaware and would want to know as much as possible to put into a file, and possibly try to look for her.

If the choice of names was any sort of indication, it would be more to stop Sleep Thief from entering dreams than taking her on as an apprentice.

"And," Sleep Thief said as she turned her full attention to Star, "I know what it is like to feel like you will forever be in the shadow of another."

Had she actually been awake, Star's body would have tensed.

"You were in my dream that night," she stated.

"Yes," Sleep Thief confirmed. "It was by chance, but I'm glad. I'm always on the look out for others like us."

"Mm-hmm." Star stood where she was, staring at the shadowy mare. True or not, she did not like the idea of somepony else having access to her dreams, be they good or ill. Princess Luna and her daughters Star knew and trusted, and one of them was too young to enter dreams on her own yet. This, however, was a mare she did not know and had no reason to trust.

In point of fact, considering they had been walking along the road to Sweet Apple Acres when...

...what happened? It was a little hard to remember. She and Pumpkin were walking to Sweet Apple Acres and then... something must have happened. They were now asleep after all. Considering it was still morning when it had happened, Sleep Thief had to be responsible for their being unconscious somehow.

Which was actually a very good reason not to trust her.

"So what do you want?" Pumpkin Cake asked.

"Basically to offer you an opportunity," Sleep Thief replied. "You see, I don't just seek out other ponies like us, but offer them... a home. An asylum. Whatever you wish to call it. Basically, it's a place where we can be ourselves. Where we can be with others of our kind and not have to worry about regular ponies. We can explore our unique abilities with others who understand, and not worry about being judged."

It also sounded very nice. Too nice for Starry Skies's liking. Yes, most ponies were nice, but part of Star's job required her to be skeptical. The idea sounded enticing, but it also sounded like a sales pitch, and buying what somepony was selling meant having to pay for it. One way or another.

"You don't have to answer right away," Sleep Thief said. "After all, it is a big decision for some. However, we would like you to join us. Just think." She turned to focus on Pumpkin. "No need to constantly control yourself for fear of what might happen." She then turned to Star again. "No need to worry about living in the shadows of another pony."

"Okay," Star snapped, baring her fangs (and slightly grateful that this was a dream so she could not blush). "I think we've heard more than enough. I'm going to ask you to leave now."

"Oh?" Sleep Thief asked, shifting her head (had she a more recognizable face, it would probably have one eyebrow raised). Leaning forward, she placed a hoof on where her chin should be. "Forgive me, but what -- precisely -- would you do if I don't?"

"I could try kicking you out," Star answered, "but if that's not possible, I can still lock you up."

"Star," Pumpkin started.

"Pumpkin," Star retorted, "believe me when I say you don't want whatever she is selling."

"Selling?" Sleep said. "I'm not 'selling' anything. I am merely offering you a safe place to be with others like us. Where you can be love and accepted as you are."

"Yes." Star rolled her eyes. "I am offering exactly what you want, and all I ask is your soul. Or maybe you will have to do this one thing of questionable morality but is so small you won't even feel guilty over it until you find out how horrible the consequences are."

"Star," Pumpkin Cake nearly shouted. "Stop it. You're being paranoid."

"Maybe," Starry Skies admitted, "but I don't like this and I don't trust her."

"Hm," Sleep Thief said as she stood up. "Well, I can see that you are rather tense and unwilling to listen at the moment, so I shall go. We can speak again another time."

There was a sudden flash of silver light.

"Hey. Y'all alright?"

With a groan, Starry Skies opened her eyes, trying to blink the remains of sleep from them. Standing over her was a blurry yellow shape surrounded by red. After a few more blinks, the blur took on the shape of a yellow face with bright red mane. The golden eyes were filled with concern.

"Pumpkin?" Star called out, looking for the unicorn.

"I'm okay," Pumpkin Cake replied, rubbing at her eyes. "Hi, Apple Bloom."

As soon as she heard the name, Starry Skies remembered who the yellow mare was: Apple Bloom, the little sister to Twilight's friend Applejack, and one of the three ponies that created the original Cutie Mark Crusaders.

"Why are y'all lyin' in the grass?" Apple Bloom asked.

"I don't know," Pumpkin answered. "We were heading to Sweet Apple Acres to see the vampire fruit bats. Then Star thought she heard something and started walking toward the river. There was... some sort of... music? Then I had a weird dream where Star and I met this strange shadowy unicorn."

"It wasn't a dream," Star cut in as she stood up and stretched. "At least not entirely. Like I said, she was actually there."

"Y'all saw Princess Luna?" Apple Bloom asked.

"No," Pumpkin said. "I don't know who she was."

"But I thought only Luna could enter other ponies' dreams. How could this other pony do it?"

"I don't know, but Twilight might. We should go ask her."

"Hold on," Star said, moving toward Pumpkin. "Maybe we should wait until later."

"What?" Pumpkin said. "Why? Don't you think Twilight would want to know about this? Especially if she doesn't have an answer and would want to find out?"

"Yes," Star replied. "I'm sure she would. She would probably want to tell Princess Luna as well, but Twilight is busy helping Rarity and Spike is in Canterlot." She placed a hoof on Pumpkin's shoulder. "We can go ahead to Sweet Apple Acres, then tell Twilight about it this evening. By then, Spike will be back and Twilight can send a letter to Princess Luna if she needs to."

"I don't know," Pumpkin said as she moved. "I don't like the idea of waiting with something like this." She then straightened up and stiffened.

"In fact, we're not waiting," she declared. "I am going to find Twilight and tell her what happened." Her gaze then softened. "And I would really like it if you came with me. That way you can confirm what I'm saying."

Starry Skies looked at Pumpkin Cake a moment before giving a nod.

"Okay. I'll come with you."

It was clear that this meant a lot to Pumpkin. If she was going to do it either way, it was better if Star went with her at the very least as moral support. Plus, considering what Pumpkin had told her earlier, the mare could probably use a little boost in confidence and self-esteem.

"Thanks," Pumpkin said with a smile. "I owe you one."

"No," Star replied. "You don't." She gave Pumpkin a mock salute. "So lead on boss."

With a grin and slight chuckle, Pumpkin Cake turned around and started down the road back toward Ponyville. Starry Skies followed after her, but not before looking back toward the river. Something had happened to draw them toward it and make them fall asleep. The fact that she did not know what or why bothered her, and she did not like the idea of walking away without checking it out.

Letting out a sigh, she let it go for now. Most likely whatever it was would try something again. If that was the case, then Star would need to try and take advantage of the opportunity and find out more about it. Hopefully, she could find a way to stay awake long enough.

For now she had to keep up with Pumpkin and tell Twilight about what happened.

Update and Curiosity

Tonight, Princess Luna sat on a throne placed upon a dais. On each side of her were similar thrones of smaller size, with alicorns of their own. The smallest sat upside down on her chair, wings flopped out as she looked around, kicking her hind legs. The other was trying to copy Princess Luna, looking down at Starry Skies who had just finished reporting on what had happened that morning (or, was it yesterday morning now?).

"A unicorn that is able to dream walk," Luna said as she shifted, tapping at her chin. "Fascinating. And you say she claims to be Chaos Touched as you and Pumpkin Cake?"

"She never actually stated it, but did seem to indicate it strongly," Star answered. "Is it possible, though? Can a pony other than you and your daughters really dream walk?"

"It has been possible," Luna replied, "but rather uncommon. Very few ponies ever had an interest in such magic, even between my banishment and return. However, it is not something that I have ever kept track of. When you also have the addition of ponies altered by chaos magic, it is something that may occur. I could double-check, but am fairly certain I do not have a dossier on a pony that is able to do such a thing."

"It would help if we knew what it looked like," grumbled the middle-sized alicorn. She ran a black hoof through her dark glittery blue mane. "Are you sure you can't tell us anything more about her? Like, what she looks like?"

"No," Star said as she shook her head. "As I said, she had herself hidden for the most part. I doubt that she actually has a black coat and gold eyes."

The alicorn -- Princess Nightmare Moon -- nodded, then turned to her mother.

"What about the silver light? Could that help? We have records of aura colors for any unicorns on file, don't we?"

"An admirable thought, Moon," Luna said with a smile -- getting a swell of pride from her daughter -- "and you are correct. We do have record of magical auras for the unicorns. However, there is an issue with that. Even if the light were from this Sleep Thief's magic, it may not necessarily reflect the normal color of her aura. Even my own magic has been silver when using dream related magic."

With a snort, Princess Nightmare Moon, crossed her hooves and turned away, sticking her lip out.

"Do not be upset," Luna said. "You came up with a wonderful idea based on what you knew. Be proud of that."

Nightmare grunted in response but did not reply.

"Moving on to other matters," Luna continued. "I have heard rumors on what could possibly be a cult for Chaos Touched ponies before, but have gotten very little in substantial information. I will have the file brought to you by Mimic when she comes to visit you shortly."

"Cult?" Star said, raising an eyebrow. That sort of made sense, did it not? Sleep Thief did try to make them feel like it would be a welcoming place and trying to play on their personal fears and self-doubts. It was especially irritating since Sleep Thief found out about it by seeing her nightmares.

A small gasp escaped her as something suddenly clicked into place. It had been bothering her since she had snapped at the mare, and now she finally understood why.

"If I may be excused," Starry Skies said with a bow. "There's something I would like to check on right away."

"Very well," Princess Luna replied. "We shall see about continuing this next time."

"Thank you. Princess Luna. Princess Nightmare Moon. Princess Tantabus."

"Bye, Star," the youngest alicorn -- Princess Tantabus -- said, waving a hoof.

"Until our next meeting," Princess Nightmare Moon said with a nod.

With one last nod, Starry Skies disappeared.

Waking up, Star jumped out of bed and ran out the room. Downstairs, she wrote a quick note.

Left early. Need to check something. Be back later. Star.

After sticking it to the fridge, she took off. As soon as she was out the door, she was up in the air, flying above Ponyville. The sky was still dark, with the first hints of pink from from the sunrise touching the horizon.

Maybe she should not have left so early after all.

Reaching Sugarcube Corner, Starry Skies found that some of the lights were on already. Landing at the door, she pushed it to see if it would open.

It did, ringing a bell to announce that it had as well as her entering.

"I'm sorry," a voice shouted from behind a door that was being pushed open. "I'm afraid we're not open yet. If you -- oh. Hello Star."

"Hi Pumpkin. Sorry for showing up so early, but I wanted to ask you about something, and didn't want to wait. Is there some place we can talk in private?"

"Yeah," Pumpkin replied. Turning back toward the kitchen she shouted "I'll be right back," before stepping out and heading for the stairs. Star followed after her until they went into a bedroom.

"Welcome to my room," Pumpkin Cake announced as she shut the door.

Starry Skies looked around for a moment, taking in the room. It had a bed, a desk, and two sets of shelves: one with toys and the other with books. There were also several pictures of Pumpkin throughout her life, including one where she was showing off her cutie mark and Pound -- with no cutie mark -- looked to be pouting in the background. The most interesting thing was the walls. They were mostly a cream color, but some spots had clearly been patched and painted, while others had scorch marks.

"So what did you want to talk to me about?" Pumpkin asked.

"That stuff you told me about having trouble with your magic and having to maintain discipline," Star said. "Have you ever talked to anypony else about that?"

Pumpkin Cake thought a moment, pursing her lips as she thought about it.

"I definitely talked to Pound about it," she answered, "Twilight when I was became her student, and Aunt Pinkie of course." She raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"I was thinking about what that shadowy mare said. About having not having to live in another pony's shadow or have to keep strict discipline."

"Yeah?" Pumpkin said.

"And it seemed like she was specifically trying to offer us what we wanted most."

A flash of anger shot through Starry Skies, causing her ears to pull back and jaw clench. Closing her eyes, she slowly took a deep breath through her nose, then let it out through her mouth. Once the worst of it had passed, she turned her attention back to Pumpkin Cake and continued.

"The way she discovered my... private issues was because she had seen them when in my dreams, which she admitted. But to know yours--"

"She must have been in my dreams at some point," Pumpkin interrupted.

"Unless you think somepony else you told would have said something," Star added.

Pumpkin gave a shake of her head at that. No surprise considering the three ponies named were extremely close to Pumpkin, with two that definitely knew the importance of keeping a friend's secret and one was a pony that had been by Pumpkin's side since even before they were born. From what Star understood, siblings may sometimes pick on and tease each other, but are extremely protective if and when another does it.

"But why?" Pumpkin asked. "Why would she be sneaking into ponies' dreams?"

"I don't know," Star answered. "The only one who knows is her and I don't think she's going to tell us. Assuming we run into her again."

Or more accurately, she mentally added, if we are aware of her again. Star felt a tension in her shoulders at the thought. This was not like with Princess Luna, who's abilities were public knowledge and often used to help ponies suffering from nightmares (or meeting with agents without being physically near them). This Sleep Thief (and who picks a name like that?) was sneaking around in other ponies' dreams, seeming to try and pick up secrets about them.

Which led to a question that Star had never considered before: what kind of secrets could a pony pick up from another pony's dreams? Especially since it could be difficult to tell what was real from what was simply strange dream stuff. But if she actually found legitimate secrets a pony was keeping, she could do more than simply try to recruit ponies to... whatever she was a part of.

"Star?" Pumpkin said. "If there's nothing else, I'm going to head back to the kitchen. Still need to get ready for the morning rush."

"Yeah," Star answered. "That's fine." She followed Pumpkin back downstairs. "I'm going to head over to the station and wait for the first train. A friend's coming with Spike's wedding present and some stuff I forgot."

"A 'friend,' huh?" Pound said from the doorway to his room. "Are we going to get to meet him?"

The pegasus stallion looked like he had just woken up. He gave them a sleepy smile as he ran a hoof through his messy mane. One of his wings shifted by his side.

"Well, she'll be here at least today," Star answered, "but may stay overnight, or even until the wedding."

"Oh," Pound said, then smiled. "Okay. Well... maybe I -- we -- we will be able to catch up with you later." He then flew down the stairs and out of sight.

Starry Skies stood there, eyes going wide as she stared at where the young stallion had disappeared from sight. Had he been flustered? Did he mean it when he said started to say "I" instead of "we?" And now that she thought about it, had there been a hint of jealousy when he thought it was a stallion?

No. No. That was just silly. Especially the last part. It was just Star projecting her own interest onto him or something.

Leaving the bakery, Starry Skies flew to the train station. Landing on the awning, she watched the last part of the sunrise, then waited for the train. The late spring morning was slightly chilly now that she was not moving, and the sun provided a faint, comforting warmth. Under different circumstances, it would be a great day to stretch out in the grass or on a cloud and lay in the morning sun, just letting it soak into the coat and muscles. Or make a little nest in the thatching like other ponies clearly had.

The sound of the train reached Star, causing her ears to perk up. Hopping down from the awning, she landed on the platform with a light thump of hooves on wood. She then moved to make certain she was not going to block the disembarking ponies, while being as noticeable as possible. Mimic should be in her normal form when she got off the train, but it was not an absolute certainty. Sometimes Mimic would disguise herself for her own reasons, be it fun, experimenting, or other.

The train slowed down as it pulled into the station, letting out one last hiss of steam before stopping fully. As soon as it did, the sounds of ponies moving to disembark could be heard. As they did, Star moved to try and scan the crowd, looking for any sign of her friend.

A different, familiar, form ended up catching Star's attention. One that is slightly taller than most, and lean. One that was mostly light pink in color, with hints of sky blue in her mane and tail. One that was not entirely surprising considering the upcoming event, and that Starry Skies would have been happy about under most circumstances.

These were not the right circumstance.

Starry Skies grimaced as she looked around. She basically saw two choices: one, she tried to hide in the crowd and hoped to find Mimic before being noticed; two, she made the first move and said hello first.

"STAR!"

Life chose option three: have Starry Skies be recognized before she could do anything. Putting on a smile, Star turned toward the mare just in time to be hugged.

"Nice to see you too, Flurry," Star said as she returned the hug.

"So how's my little cousin doing?" Princess Flurry Heart asked, smirking as she broke the hug.

"Technically, I'm your aunt," Star replied, "and I'm older than you."

"Pff," Flurry huffed out, rolling her eyes. "Like, not even by a year." She then puffed out, flickering her wings. "Besides, I am a princess, which means that I outrank you, and you have to do what I say."

"Oh of course," Star said as she rolled her eyes. "How silly of me to forget." She dropped into a mock bow. "How may I serve you, oh Princess Fluffy Butt."

Princess Flurry Heart pursed her lips as her eyes narrowed, looking down at Starry Skies. The purse shifted into a smirk, then a giggle, until becoming a full laugh. One that Star shared as she got back up.

"I'm glad to see you," Flurry said as she hugged Star again.

"I'm glad to see you too," Star replied. "But what are you doing here? I'd expect you to be on The Crystal Empire train. And where's everypony else?"

"They're still in Canterlot, visiting Grandma and Grandpa and dealing with Empire-Equestria business," Flurry answered. "They'll be coming in in a few days. I decided to come early. As much as I love Mom and Dad, I just wanted to get away from them for a day." She grinned. "Having a cousin to hang out with is a bonus."

The smile faded as Princess Flurry Heart looked at Starry Skies, brow furrowing.

"But if you didn't know I was coming, what are you doing here?"

"I was actually coming to see if a friend arrived," Star answered. "She's supposed to be bringing me some stuff, including the wedding present."

"Would this friend happen to be a gorgeous green unicorn with fabulous mane and a tendency to save your butt?" a voice asked from behind Starry Skies.

"She tends to think that," Star replied, turning around.

There standing behind her was Mimic. The mare stood there with a small smile on her face, looking at Star and Flurry. Her horn glowed with magic, her aura holding a box on her back in place.

"Hi Mimic," Starry Skies said. "Glad you could make it." Raising a wing, she pointed it at the alicorn. "This is my niece, Princess Flurry Heart of The Crystal Empire."

Princess Flurry Heart scowled at Star, but said nothing.

"Flurry," Star continued, "this is my friend, Mimic, from Canterlot."

"How wonderful to meet you," Mimic said as she walked up to Flurry and offered a hoof.

"You too." Flurry shook the hoof and smiled. Her eyes then narrowed as she glanced at Star. "It's nice to meet a friend of Star's. Especially if they have some fun embarrassing stories about my dear little cousin."

Mimic turned to Starry Skies, her eyes narrowing. Her smile turned into a grin that was definitely wicked.

"Oh, I may have one or two that you might enjoy." She then turned around. "Come on. I'll tell you all about it on the way to the castle."

The two of them then started walking off. With a groan, Starry Skies started to follow after them.

This was going to be a long walk.

Costumes and Accessories

Back at the castle, Starry Skies and Mimic headed up to Star's room while Princess Flurry Heart went to find Twilight. As soon as the door was closed, Mimic's magic encompassed it, locking it thoroughly and creating one-way soundproofing. She then did the same with the window. With that done, Mimic set down her box and saddlebags. A groan escaped her as she stretched out before turning her attention back to the items, pulling them open.

"Okay," she said as she started to search the box, "first thing first: the wedding present."

Out came a smaller box, wrapped in silver paper with a large pink bow on the top.

"Here you go. One custom sculpture from Crystal Creations, made to your specifications. It looks pretty good." She passed it to Star. "I was extra careful with it the entire way."

Star took the gift and set it under the desk for now.

"Did you get my Mare-Do-Well costume?"

"Yeah," Mimic answered as she pulled out the purple outfit. "Why do you want it though?"

"Figured it might be a little useful. Plus, Rainbow Dash caught me in my Shadowbolt uniform once already. She'll be looking for that now. Only reason that I was able to escape was because of that stallion that was using the dressing dummies like puppets. Plus, I really don't want to have to distract her with a kiss again." Her face scrunched as she stuck her tongue out.

"Oh," Mimic gasped out, eyes wide. "You kissed her? How scandalous. I didn't know you had a thing for older mares."

"I don't," Star replied. "It was the only thing I could think of to distract her long enough to escape. An idea for which I blame you."

"Yeah," Mimic giggled out. "That is definitely something I would do."

She then turned her attention to the saddlebags.

"Anyway, you also got a new Shadowbolt uniform." She pulled the outfit from the hidden compartment and held it up. "Doctor Cog is still working on the name. I'm calling it 'The Lightning Strike Special.'"

"Lightning Strike Special?" Star repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah. The lightning bolts aren't just decoration anymore. Now they are able to absorb and store energy. Then you -- the wearer -- can activate them to release a bright flash of light, blinding everypony and giving you a chance to escape."

"That might be useful."

"We also grabbed you a variety of things that you carry with you in your civilian identity and not draw attention. Including... this."

It was a small object with a silvery color to it. It was a thick piece of metal, made into the image of a shooting star. On the other side was a clip that could snap together, holding it in place.

"A hair clip?" Star asked.

"Not just a hair clip," Mimic said with a grin. "It's also... a small saw blade and lock picks. Turn the star."

"What?

Mimic grabbed a hold of Star's face, hooves squeezing her cheeks as the were pressed nose to nose.

"Turn the star," Mimic repeated, eyes wide and twinkling. "Do it!" She pulled Star closer. "Doooo iiiiit!"

"Let go of my face," Star said tried to say. Unfortunately, the pressing of her cheeks and snout distorted her face and made it very hard to speak clearly.

Once Mimic let go, Starry Skies returned her attention to the hair clip. Pressing her hoof down on the star, she turned it. There was a small metallic click as the star's contrail popped open, revealing a dual-edged serrated saw blade. Inside was also a small compartment filled with lock picks.

Star closed the blade and put the pin in her mane.

"Here's hoping I won't need it."

After collecting several other small, easily concealable items, the two of them moved on to the folders that Princess Luna had sent along as well. There was very little useful information in them. Mostly just rumors and speculation. This was especially disappointing since it meant that either they had not been able to get any agents into the cults, or they had, but the agents had been compromised (be it joining fully or being discovered) and had never been able to send in a report.

One file was about a group that seemed to worship Discord, believing that he had changed them into what they were for a purpose. Another went in the opposite direction: claiming it was not Chaos that made them but Harmony. Not all of them were obviously cults either. One was more of a school up near Manehattan, where ponies with unique abilities could go to learn to control them and work together. There was also one that was more of a paramilitary group, who claimed to want to see the government toppled and replaced, but seemed more interested in going out in the woods and getting drunk. One of the files was on a group that did have some cult-like indicators, but was not definitively noted as such. That group believed that the rise of various legendary villains over the years -- starting with the return of Nightmare Moon -- were the warning signs that something greater was coming: a threat that would bring about the end of Equestria, and it would be up to the survivors to build a new land for ponies to live in.

Deciding to take a little break, Starry Skies and Mimic slipped the folders under the mattress and made sure the rest of the supplies brought were "properly stored." The spell around the door and window disappeared as the two of them left the room, heading downstairs.

"YOU'RE BEING RIDICULOUS!" they heard someone shouting from downstairs.

The two of them froze, ears up and eyes wide as they listened. In the wake of the shouting, the silence was extra noticeable.

"I DO NOT THINK IT'S FOR THE BEST!" the voice -- which Star now recognized as Flurry Heart's -- continued. "I AM NOT GOING TO BE CHASED OFF JUST BECAUSE OF A POSSIBLE THREAT!"

Star jumped off the stairs and flapped her wings, flying down toward the main floor and the direction of the shouting.

"YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW IF SOMETHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN!"

"If somepony went to the effort to steal it, they must have a plan to use it," a second voice -- Twilight Sparkle's -- said loudly.

"BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN HERE!"

Taking advantage of the pause, Starry Skies threw herself into the room.

"What's going on?" she called out. "I could hear yelling from my room."

"They could probably hear it all the way back to Canterlot," Mimic added from behind the doorway.

"Back to Canterlot is exactly the problem," Flurry Heart growled out.

"Star," Twilight said calmly, "you're Flurry Heart's age. Maybe you could talk some sense into her."

"Talk some sense into me?" Flurry snapped. "If anypony here needs sense, it's you! Star, tell her."

"BEFORE I TELL EITHER OF YOU ANYTHING," Star shouted before continuing in a normal tone, "I need to know what is going on first."

Everything turned quiet as Flurry Heart and Twilight Sparkle both turned their full attention to Starry Skies. Star stood there, looking at the two and waiting for one of them to speak.

"Okay," Twilight said. "Somepony broke into Zecora's hut last night." She held up a hoof. "She's fine. Was out with a friend of hers for the night and was nowhere near the place when it happened. However, the place was thoroughly searched, but only one thing was taken: The Alicorn Amulet."

Everything turned silent as Twilight let that sink in.

"Okay," Mimic called out. "Well it's been nice to meet you all, and this has all been very interesting, but I need to get going. I have a train back to Canterlot to catch. So good luck with..." she made a waving motion with her hoof "...all of this, and maybe we'll get to hang out and get to know each other some other time."

She then placed a hoof on Star's shoulder.

"I will see you back in Canterlot after the wedding."

If Star did not actually know better, she would think that Mimic was sincerely afraid of staying now.

Captain Lulamoon was not going to be happy about this.

"Actually," Princess Flurry Heart said, "if Twilight gets her way, we might just end up on that train with you."

"What?" Star and Mimic both said.

"As I said," Twilight explained, "the only thing taken was The Alicorn Amulet. That means whoever took it was looking specifically for it. Whatever reason they have, I sincerely doubt it could be a good one. As such, I believe that you all should return to Canterlot until the day of Spike's wedding. If anything happens, you will all be safely out of Ponyville."

"And I for one am not leaving," Princess Flurry Heart declared. "Especially for something that could possibly happen."

"Flurry--"

"No. I know you mean well, Twilight, but I am an adult and future leader of The Crystal Empire. I will not let a threat -- an uncertain one at that -- frighten me, let alone coerce me into running away. That is not the kind of ruler I am going to be, and that is not the reputation I am going to have."

With a sigh, Twilight turned to Starry Skies.

"I believe you can see the problem now," Twilight said. "Can you please talk some sense into her?"

"I doubt it," Star replied. "Besides, I'm staying too."

"Yes!" Flurry shouted, pumping a hoof in the air.

"What?" Twilight cried out, eyes going wide.

"Well this sounds like a family conversation," Mimic said. "So I'll leave you all to it and be on my way. Star, Princess Flurry Heart, Princess Twilight Sparkle." With that, she walked toward the door, leaving the three of them.

"What do you mean you're staying?" Twilight yelled, wings flaring out behind her. "Don't either of you get how serious this is? How dangerous?"

"Considering I either wasn't born yet or just a baby when it happened, no," Star replied. "But the way I see it, the safest place to be is close to you. You've beaten it before, and you weren't even an alicorn then."

"I didn't 'beat it,'" Twilight retorted, her ears pulling flat. "I just managed to trick the pony wearing it into taking it off, and that was with help from my friends. Plus, it was the second time I had met Trixie. I had a pretty good idea what she was like and wanted. I don't even know who took it this time, much less what they want or why."

"All the more reason for me to stay," Flurry Heart jumped in. "If something does happen, then there will be another alicorn to help you out. I may not be as powerful as you, but I'm pretty good with my magic."

Twilight looked between the other two ponies. Her ears pulled back further and eyes narrowed as her jaw clenched.

"You know, being the oldest princess and Sparkle family member here, I could order you to leave," she growled out.

Starry Skies bit her lip as she tried to hold back a smirk. Twilight must have been getting desperate to bring that point up. It had been something that she had brought up before, but never actually gone through with.

"Yes," Princess Flurry Heart conceded, "but I still won't do it. Which means that you'll have to arrest me and have me escorted under armed guard back to Canterlot." She grinned. "And not only would that technically be an international incident between two kingdoms, but it would also mean that you would have to explain to Mom, Dad, Grandma, Grandpa, Princess Luna , and Princess Celestia why I was arrested for Civil Disobedience."

Star could not hold back the slight snort that escaped her.

Throwing back her head, Twilight let out a groan of frustration.

"Ugh, fine." She rubbed at her forehead. "You can stay. Just... Just be careful. Your parents would kill me if something happened to you." She then turned to Star, eyes narrowing. "That goes doubly for you. I don't want to deal with Mom and Dad being angry. Got it?"

"Got it."

Girls' Night Out

The next few days were relatively peaceful for Ponyville. However, the same could not be said around the castle. With the potential threat of The Alicorn Amulet, Twilight became a bit paranoid and overprotective. She was constantly trying to keep an eye on them, asking where they were going and what they were up to. It was especially awkward when Twilight would get so caught up in watching them, she would end up following them into the bathroom.

Not even Pumpkin Cake was safe. Not only did she have to put up with Twilight's overbearing behavior when at the castle, and had to put up with being escorted home (as well as being watched by her parents while there).

"You have to understand," Twilight explained, "you are one of the most powerful and talented unicorns, and my student. That means that whomever stole the amulet would either want to face you, or use you as bait."

The argument of "I'm old enough to take care of myself," did not really seem to have much influence on Twilight's view. So when Princess Flurry Heart came up with her idea, Pumpkin Cake's and Starry Skies's skepticism were understandable.

"A girls' night out," Flurry declared. "The three of us out on the town and having fun. We could go dancing, catch a show, hit an all night diner, maybe even stay up until dawn."

Twilight's brow furrowed as she looked at Flurry, lips pressed tight. One of her ears flickered.

"So... let me get this straight," she said. "You want me to let the three of you get out all night, alone, while there is a possible threat out there?"

"First," Flurry replied, "you don't know if there is any threat. There has been no sign of The Alicorn Amulet since it was taken. Second, it could be argued we are always in danger. Equestria isn't exactly a completely safe place to grow up, especially Ponyville which has been the sight of multiple attacks and is right next to a forest filled with wild monsters. Third, we wouldn't be alone. The three of us would all be together. We are all adults and can take care of ourselves. If anything happens to one of us, the other two will be there to help."

With a sigh, Princess Flurry Heart moved closer.

"My parents are coming tomorrow. This is going to be my last night of freedom before going back to The Crystal Empire. Please Aunt Twilight, let us have some fun."

Twilight shifted, looking conflicted. Seeing their opening, Starry Skies and Pumpkin Cake both added their own opinion to the conversation. Between the three of them and not having a very sturdy excuse to refuse, Twilight relented. As long as they stayed together and stayed in the town proper, they could go.

"But the moment you even think something is happening," she stated, "I want the three of you back here. Got it?"

The three of them shouted their thanks and got out of sight before Twilight Sparkle could change her mind. Star and Flurry headed upstairs while Pumpkin hurried home. After taking a shower, brushing her mane and tail, and putting her clip in place, Starry Skies was ready for a night on the town. Joining Princess Flurry Heart, the two of them left to pick up Pumpkin and enjoy their night of freedom.

The first place they went to was a restaurant. There they had drinks, appetizers and -- foregoing the main course -- dessert. It was the first time that Star had ever tried green bean fries, which she actually enjoyed. The grasshopper tasted of neither grass nor of the insect, but it did have a nice minty taste to it. The best part was the giant, warm, chocolate chip cookie with ice cream on top.

As they ate, Flurry Heart did most of the talking, telling them about her experiences in The Crystal Empire and some of her lessons.

After her third strawberry hard lemonade, however, her tone changed some.

"It's not that I don't like being royalty," she said. "I do. And I love The Crystal Empire. I really want to help them all, and hope to be a good leader. It's just... I sometimes wish I had more choice in the matter, you know? I mean, I've been raised and taught to be a princess my whole life, so I should be good at it, but what if I could have been something else? Maybe I could have been a DJ. Maybe I could have joined the guard like Dad. Imagine how great I could have been at protecting Canterlot. Or maybe I could have been a diplomat, bring peace between ponies and changelings."

She turned to face Starry Skies.

"Sometimes, I envy that you had the freedom to choose your own life. You didn't have to follow a certain path because of who you were."

"Not entirely true," Star mumbled as she looked down at the remains of her cookie.

"What?" Flurry said, leaning forward. "What was that?"

Star felt her face heat up as she realized she had actually been heard (although the alcohol probably did not help matters). Ears pulling back, she looked down at the table as she took another bite of her sugary dessert.

"Nothing," she responded. "I think I've had enough to drink."

"No," Pumpkin said. "You said something, and it was not happy. We're all friends here--"

"And we're family," Flurry added.

"And you've listened to me talk about some... personal matters," Pumpkin continued. "So it's only fair that you be allowed to do the same thing." She smiled. "Come on. It will make you feel better."

"It's nothing," Star repeated. "Just some old stuff. Nothing to really talk about now."

"Old stuff?" Flurry asked, raising an eyebrow. "How come I haven't heard of it before. You have to tell me now."

Her horn lit up with magic.

"And I'm not letting you leave until you do."

Starry Skies considered it for a moment. The two of them were too interested to just blow it off, or at least not without something major to distract them. While a monster suddenly attacking was a possibility, it was very unlikely to happen at this very moment. Maybe she should tell them the truth. At least the part of it that was safe. It was about long past stuff anyways. Nothing to do with her current activities. Plus, friends shared personal things some times (so she had been told numerous times).

"Fine," Star said, "but you have to promise -- Pinkie Promise -- not to tell anypony else."

Pumpkin Cake went through the ritual instantly, but Princess Flurry Heart looked back and forth between the two of them.

"What is a 'Pinkie Promise?'"

"It's a special type of promise that Pinkie Pie came up with," Star explained. "It's very important and means you will keep it no matter what." Star's eyes narrowed. "Because if you don't, she will hunt you down, and... make... you... pay."

Flurry's eyes went wide as she let out an audible gulp.

"Pinkie has a very specific way of stating it," Pumpkin added, "but I can't really say it because if you do, she pops out for emphasis."

"Okay," Flurry said, "now you're just messing with me."

"She's not," Star replied. "Believe me."

After being shown how to do it by Pumpkin Cake, Princess Flurry Heart Pinkie Promised.

Starry Skies took a deep breath and prepared herself.

"I was born in Canterlot, and my family lived in an neighborhood that was -- until The Chaos Touched were born -- entirely unicorns." A sigh escaped her, one of her ears twitching. "Even after, it pretty much was. Supposedly there were some others, but they moved away for more diverse neighborhoods. So not only was I the only bat pony in a family of unicorns, but also the entire street."

Reaching out, she grabbed her drink and took another sip. Not the best idea considering what she did. With an occupation like hers, allowing something to slip was most decidedly a bad thing. Under different circumstances, she might have let slip something that was supposed to be a secret instead of a private feeling. A secret agent that could not keep secrets, at best, would be removed from the job, and, at worst, would end up dead with no one knowing where they had disappeared to.

"Even before Nightmare Moon's return, my family was pretty well known." She let out a snort. "I mean, hay, Dad worked at the royal observatory, Mom is a popular writer, Shining Armor was in the guard, rapidly gaining rank, and Twilight was the personal student of Princess Celestia. Once you add in everything that has happened since Nightmare Moon, it's no wonder that practically everypony knows about my family, and a lot of the neighbors try to kiss my parents' asses in the hopes of getting in good with the princesses.

"So here I am, the little bat pony growing up in a neighborhood where everypony else is a unicorn, with a family that are all very successful in their fields, and siblings that have all saved Equestria -- if not the world -- multiple times."

She downed the rest of her drink and huffed.

"Mom and Dad were supportive, wanting me to simply be happy and do my best, and Shining, Twilight and Spike were nice if busy with their own lives. Everypony else, however, seemed to have very high expectations to me... or thought very little of me. After all, if Shining could become Captain turned prince consort, Twilight a princess, and Spike a hero and dragon liaison, then I -- the youngest -- must be destined for great things. Alternatively, maybe I'll be nothing. After all, I'm just a bat pony! 'Can't save the day if you don't have ma-gic!'

"Not to mention the constantly being compared to them. No matter how well I do in school, Twilight Sparkle, former student to Princess Celestia and smartest pony since Starswirl the Bearded -- if not of all time -- did better. If I ever showed any interest in law enforcement, then I am trying to be like my big brother, or the whole family is brave and heroic.

"And it's not like you can get mad at them. No. After all, they're family. They're nice, friendly ponies who just happened to save Equestria on numerous occasions. They didn't do anything wrong, but you still find yourself stuck living in their shadows, never able to live up to it unless you somehow manage to become royalty and save the entire kingdom at least three times!"

She turned to face Flurry Heart more.

"You may not realize it, but you're going to face the same thing. Your parents are seen as heroes to The Crystal Empire after defeating King Sombra and restoring the empire. Being their daughter -- and born in The Crystal Empire -- the ponies there are going to expect you to be some totally awesome and heroic princess-slash-soldier-slash-who knows what else."

Starry Skies stopped as she realized that the other two mares were staring at her with wide eyes. A sigh escaped her as she slouched down in her seat, ears pulling back.

"Sorry," she said softly. "Didn't mean to go off like that."

"Wow," Flurry said. "I had no idea that you felt that way. You always seemed happy when we hung out."

"I really don't want to discuss this anymore," Star said as she pushed away from the table. "Let's just pay the bill and go do something else."

After they paid, the three of them left the restaurant in silence. Starry Skies wound up in the lead as they left, walking along the streets of Ponyville. She did not mind too much. It was rather embarrassing how much she had said. Her intent had been to simply say enough to sate the pair's curiosity, but once she got started, she just sort of lost control and it all came pouring out.

What had really surprised her was the emotion that had come with it. Star had thought that she had moved on, put it all behind her, and forgotten about those feelings. After all, as it is, she was able to protect Equestria and not have to worry about being compared to any of her siblings in the process. She was doing what she wanted how she wanted. But once she had started talking, it all came back, fresh as yesterday.

Star pushed the thoughts aside. This was supposed to be a night of fun, after all. Plus, she should be watching out for the other two just in case something did happen.

Stopping, she turned to face the other two.

"So, where now?"

"How do you feel about singing?" Pumpkin asked. "I know a place that has karaoke."

"Ooh," Flurry Heart said, eyes wide. "I want to try that. Star?"

"I don't really feel like singing," Star replied, "but I'm more than happy to make fun of your singing. Lead on, Pumpkin."

"If you want to make fun of my singing, you're going to be disappointed," Flurry declared as they walked, head held high. "I'll have you know I am quite a skilled singer."

"Really?" Star asked with a smirk. "Because I heard it was so bad, you could shatter crystal."

Flurry's eyes narrowed as her lips pressed tight, glaring at Starry Skies. She stuck her tongue out before turning away and continuing on. A snicker escaped from Star as she followed.

After walking for a while, Star felt the familiar prickle at the back of her neck. Adjusting her pace, she moved to catch up with Flurry and Pumpkin, keeping the group closer together. Ears perked and twitching, Starry Skies looked around, taking in as much around her as possible.

She managed to catch a glimpse of something lightly colored with feathers and a dark tail.

At the next corner, form jumped out at them.

"BOO!"

Star tensed and jerked at the sudden appearance, but managed to keep from doing more as she recognized the pegasus in front of them. Princess Flurry Heart let out a yelp as she hopped back, flaring her wings out. Pumpkin Cake turned and swung out with a hoof.

"OW!" Pound yelped as his sister hit him in the shoulder. "It's me, Pumpkin. It's just me."

"I know," Pumpkin growled. "That's why I just smacked you and didn't try to blast you with magic. It's what you get for trying to scare us like that."

"Okay," Pound sighed, rubbing the spot where he got smacked. "Fine. I guess I deserve that." He then grinned. "So what are you three up to now?"

"We're on our way to sing karaoke," Flurry Heart stated.

"Sounds like fun. Mind if I join you?"

"Well..." Pumpkin Cake said, "...technically it's supposed to be a girls' night." She then turned to look at Flurry and Star. "But if they don't mind..."

"I'm fine with it," Princess Flurry Heart said. "Another pony could make it more fun."

With that, it came down to Starry Skies. It would be easy for her to simply say yes, and it would give her a chance to spend time with Pound and get to know him better, but she did not want to seem too eager.

Plus, an idea suddenly came to her.

"If you come with us," she stated, "then you have to sing."

"Hey," Princess Flurry Heart called out. "If he has to sing, you do too."

"Ugh," Star groaned out, rolling her eyes. "Fine."

Now with a fourth, they continued on. It was not long before Star could hear music.

And... was feeling kind of tired. It was just like...

On the path to Sweet Apple Acres! Star suddenly felt wide awake as her heart pounded in her chest.

"Cover your ears!" she shouted.

"What?" Flurry asked. "Star, why--"

"NOW!" Starry Skies snapped, causing the others to jump before doing what she said. Turning her back to them, Starry Skies took a deep breath, and let out an ear-piercing shriek. The sound filled the air, echoing off the small buildings. It was only when her lungs burned for air did she stop, gasping.

"Run!" she shouted. "Get to the karaoke bar." Moving forward, she pushed at the others, trying to get them going.

"Why?" Pumpkin Cake said, louder than was necessary. "What's going on? What's wrong?"

"Later. Move." Star gave a firm shove.

A pair of dressing dummies appeared in front of the group, blocking the way.

"Pumpkin, Flurry, blast them."

Pumpkin Cakes and Flurry Heart's horns started to glow with magic. However, before they could unleash the energy, the sound of singing filled the air. Star could hear it loud and clear, and recognized it: a lullaby.

The magic around Pumpkin's and Flurry's horns faded as they and Pound started to sag. Starry Skies could feel it as well. The adrenaline burst from earlier was wearing off, and she was becoming tired. Her eyelids were getting heavy and legs starting to shake.

Got to stay awake, she thought. Protect the others. Find out who...why...wha...wh...

As she fell, Star managed to turn toward the source of the singing. She caught sight of what looked like scales before everything went blurry, then went black.

Awaking Abducted

Starry Skies woke up to find herself in a cage. It was a small space, not quite enough room to stand up or turn around. From her spot, she could see the cages that were holding Flurry Heart and each of the Cake twins separately. None of them had any obvious signs of injury, and she could see them breathing.

Moving as much as she could in the little space, Star tried to take in her surroundings. From what she could see, they were inside a building. A warehouse maybe? Ponyville must have at least a few. There were no windows that Star could see. The basement to a house?

"What happened?" Pound Cake groaned out, rubbing his head.

"We were put into a magical sleep and abducted," Star answered.

"PUMPKIN!" Pound shouted as he jumped out, slamming his head against the top of the cage with a loud clang.

"I'm okay," Pumpkin called out, "I think. Where are we?"

"Cages," Star replied. "Room with no windows. Flurry?"

"I'm awake," Flurry said. "Any ideas on who took us or why?"

"I think I have an idea," Pumpkin said. "Just before I passed out, I heard something that sounded like music, like when Star and I were knocked out before."

There was a loud bang as a door was slammed opened.

"My ears are burn-ing!" a feminine voice sang out.

The pony that approached the cages was... short. She was about half the height of Starry Skies, at most. She was also a little... pudgy? Chubby? There was definitely a little bit of excess fat on her white cheeks. The mare tossed her head back as she walked, making her curly pink mane bounce slightly. Following behind her was one of the dressing dummies and a pony with insect-like wings.

"Awwww," Princess Flurry Heart cooed out. "She's so adorable. I just want to pinch her cheeks."

"I AM NOT ADORABLE!" the pony -- assumably Sleep Thief -- bellowed, turning to face Flurry Heart. "I am a mare that should be feared and respected! Not some cute little filly that should be fawned and cuddled!"

"Aw, look," Flurry continued. "Even her tantrums are cute." This got a glare from the tiny mare, which Flurry just smirked at.

"So I take it you're Sleep Thief," Star said.

"The one and only," the mare said with a smirk. "So glad you could finally join us... in one sense of the word at least."

"Well you didn't really give us much of a choice," Pound grumbled, "seeing as you knocked us out and put us in these cages."

"I did ask two of you before to join me, and you turned me down," Sleep Thief replied. "Didn't want you missing out on this." She turned to look at Pumpkin Cake. "Especially since I could use some help." She then returned her attention to them all. "Plus three of you belong with us, and I really couldn't leave one of you behind to be discovered or anything, now could I?"

"So I'm just collateral damage?" Flurry Heart asked.

"I'm afraid so. I'm sorry darling, but I don't think I have any use of you, and you aren't exactly one of us, now are you?"

"So what do you need me for?" Pumpkin asked. This got a chuckle from the other mare.

"Oh come now, do you really think I would be foolish enough to reveal my whole plan before I was enacting it? You don't have to wait long, though. Now that I have you here, we can start as soon as everything's ready."

Turning away, she headed for the door.

"Keep an eye on them," Sleep Thief said to the flutter pony. "Especially the stallion. A chance to save his sister and show off for a bunch of mares -- including a princess -- sounds like the perfect time to try something stupid."

The flutter pony gave a nod, the wings twitching on her back. The dressing dummy stepped aside, allowing Sleep Thief to leave.

That was interesting. The pony that was controlling it was not in the room, and Star could see no way that he could be looking into the room without being seen. That would indicate that he was somehow able to give it a basic form of autonomy. It was doubtful that it was more than basic, allowing it to follow simple instructions. It would be easy enough to outwit, provided they could get out and do something about the flutter pony.

First would be trying to befriend and talk to her. Star closed her eyes and took a deep breath, focusing. Opening her eyes back up, she put on her friendliest smile.

"Excuse me," she called out as sweetly as she could. "Hi. I'm Starry Skies. Most call me Star. That" -- she pointed -- "is Pound Cake, and those are Flurry Heart, and Pound's sister, Pumpkin Cake. What's your name?"

The flutter pony narrowed her eyes as she glared at Star, lips pressed tight. Star managed to do a slow count to ten without getting any further response.

"Don't feel like telling me, huh? I guess I understand since you don't really know any of us. Although the best way to get to know us is to talk to us, and one of the first things done is normally sharing names."

The mare continued to glare at Star, not moving.

"Okay, you don't want to talk," Star said. "Are you willing to listen? Is this really what you want to do? To watch four ponies being held prisoner against their will?"

The flutter pony flinched, ears dropping as she took a step back. Her head turned, looking away from Star. That reaction sent a thrill of hope and excitement through Starry Skies. Whatever was going on, the other mare was not entirely supportive of it. Maybe that could work in Star's favor.

"It's not too late. You can just let us out of these cages and leave. We can get the inhibitor rings off and find our own way out."

"Couldn't even if I wanted to," the pony finally replied. "Don't have the key. Besides, we're too close."

With a sigh, Starry Skies ran her hoof through her mane, feeling the hair clip still in place.

"Too close to what?" Pumpkin Cake asked. "And what do you need me for?"

The flutter pony took another step back, moving to look away from them all.

"We aren't supposed to discuss it with outsiders."

"And you don't see anything wrong with that?" Flurry Heart asked.

"You wouldn't understand!" the flutter pony shouted as she turned to face Flurry Heart. "None of you would, especially you. And there's not enough time to explain. Things will be better for ponies like me -- for ponies like us -- soon."

"And what about other ponies?" Star asked. "Can you say that things will be better for them?"

She slipped the clip out of her hair and under her wing.

"Can you look me in the eye and say that things will be better for everypony? That it will be worth abducting us and freeing a thief from prison? That whatever is about to happen, no ponies will suffer or get hurt?"

"Ponies are already suffering!" the mare shouted. "And of course some of the ponies are going to resist at first, but they will see how much better things are once everything is done."

"And what about breaking a thief out of jail?" Star asked, pointing at the dummy. "What about having a criminal involved in this whole thing?"

The mare bit her lip as she turned to look back at the dummy. Her ears and wings gave a flicker as her tail twitched behind her.

"He... he wasn't supposed to do that," she finally said. "We were supposed to keep low profiles until everything was ready." She then straightened up and faced Star again, face hardening. "Still, we couldn't just leave him there. He's one of us, and we still need him."

Star's own lips pressed tight as she stared at the mare. Although there was some doubt about what they were doing, it did not seem like it would be enough to convince the mare to turn against the group. That left two major possibilities: either getting the mare close enough to render her unconscious, or get her frustrated enough to leave.

"Is that how it's going to be?" Starry Skies asked. "You and the others are allowed to do whatever you want without any consequences? Just take whatever you want from whoever you want and not worry about who might suffer or get hurt?"

"NO!" the mare shouted. "It's not like that. We aren't trying to replace one group of power-abusive elitists with another. We're trying to make things better. For everypony." Looking down, she placed a hoof on her stomach. "Especially those like us."

Fuck, Starry Skies thought, jaw clenching. That made things more complicated. Rendering the mare unconscious would be a little too dangerous now.

So, the flutter pony mare was not going to betray her group, and Star could not knock her out without it being too risky. The best chance was to try and get her to leave. With the new information that Star now had, she saw something that may work.

"And what are you going to tell them when they get older?" Starry Skies asked. "Do you really think they will understand everything that happened when you try to explain it to them? Can you honestly say that the future you will create will be worth telling them how it came to be? How you were willing to hurt others and let them suffer? Is that the kind of pony you want them to--"

"Shut up!" the flutter pony snapped. "Just shut up. You don't... you can't..." She let out a snort and stomped off.

"I need to get out of here," she declared as she moved past the dummy and toward the door, slamming it behind her as she left.

No longer being watched -- by a living guard at least -- Star pulled out the hair clip, giving it a press and turn. With a click, it popped open to reveal the blade and, more importantly, the lock picks. Taking the picks in her wing, Star slipped them outside the cage and around to the door. She closed her eyes as she felt for the lock, then started working the picks into the slot.

"What are you doing?" Princess Flurry Heart asked.

"Sshh," Star whispered, keeping her eyes closed. "I'm trying to pick the lock and get out of here."

"How can you--"

"Sshh," Star repeated. "I have to go by feel and sound."

Star could hear Flurry let out a snort, but did not talk further. Eyes still closed, she tried to relax and focus. There had been some practice with lock-picking, but it had always been from the other side. Granted there was not much to see in the lock when working on it, but it was part of the how they practiced and were trained. It was also a bit more difficult since some of the movements were reversed.

Minutes must have passed in silence as Star tried to work. Her jaw clenched as she squeezed her eyes tighter, trying to listen to the scraping and clicking, to feel the movement of the picks along the slot and over the lock mechanisms. Lock picking had never really been a strength of hers, and having to do it blind was--

There was a loud pop as the pressure on one pick disappeared. A small gasp of excitement escaped Star as she opened her eyes.

Only to be replaced with disappointment as she saw that the door was still locked and the pick had actually snapped.

"Well that's disappointing," she said. "I don't suppose any of you know how to pick a lock?"

"No," Pumpkin Cake answered.

"Not without using my magic," Flurry Heart said, "which I can't with this stupid ring on it."

All eyes turned to Pound Cake. The stallion shifted, one of his ears flicking as his wings ruffled themselves against his side. A small cough escaped from his throat.

"Wait," Pumpkin called out. "Am I to understand that my dear, sweet, innocent, brother knows how to pick locks? Do you have a dark side I don't know about? Some sort of criminal activity you've been keeping from us?"

"No," Pound snapped. "Nothing like that. It's just..." He shifted and licked his lips. "...I may have lost my keys to the shop or display cases a couple times. If it was on a day where nopony else was home or available... I might have had to jimmy the lock or two because of it. Not like I have any sort of training in it or anything."

"Well give it a try at least," Starry Skies said as she tossed the hair clip to Pound.

One of his wings slipped out from between the bars to pick up object and held it up close. His eyes narrowed as he looked at it for a moment before sticking it into the lock of his own cage.

"Star," Flurry Heart called out, "why do you carry lock picks with you?"

Starry Skies had been expecting this question, and had an answer for it all planned out.

"Why do you not?"

"What could I possibly need lock picks for?"

"Oh, I don't know," Star said as she rolled her eyes. "Maybe if we get abducted and need to break out of a place that has locked doors or something. But what are the chances of that happening? I mean, it's not like we have any connection to anypony of power or influence or anything like that."

"Is now really the best time for sarcasm?" Flurry asked, ears dropping.

"Considering this is a situation that we need lock picks for and we're just waiting to see if Pound can unlock his cell, yes," Star declared. "I'd say this is the perfect time for sarcasm."

In response, Flurry Heart stuck her tongue out at Starry Skies.

"Ah ha!" Pound Cake cried out. "I got it!" Pushing the cage door opened, he jumped out and posed, wings spread wide and massive grin on his face.

At which point, the dressing dummy slammed itself into him. There was a grunt as the pegasus slammed into metal bars, and Star heard a muffled crunch.

"POUND!" Pumpkin cried out, throwing herself at the door. "Leave my brother alone you... you... cheap pile of cotton!"

The dummy raised its head and turned to look at Pumpkin Cake. If it were possible for a animated sewing dummy with no facial features to have and express emotions, Star was pretty sure that the thing would look very offended.

"What's the matter?" Star called out. "Did the bargain bin reject get its feelings hurt?"

The dummy turned to face Starry Skies.

"Oh no," Star said, trying to sound as bored as possible. "I've offended the dressing dummy. What are you going to do? Wear a dress at me? Maybe pop a cheap stitch?"

The dressing dummy looked toward Star a little longer before returning its attention to Pound Cake. One of its legs wrapped around his middle, lifting him up.

"Hey!" Star called out. "Hey! Have moths eaten away your ears or something? I'm talking to you!"

Instead of looking at her or stopping, the dummy dragged Pound back to his cage and threw him inside (Star grimaced as she could see that one of the wings was no longer lying against his body the way it should). It then slammed the door shut, the lock re-engaging with a click. It then returned to where it had been standing, watching the captors again.

"Pound," Pumpkin whimpered, looking at her brother's unconscious form.

Patching and Planning

The flutter pony came back, stopped to stare at Pound Cake, then disappeared again. Not long after, she returned again. This time she was followed by another pony: an earth mare carrying a first-aid kit. Neither of them spoke to any of the others as they went over to Pound Cake's cage. The earth pony gave Pound some sort of shot before wrapping his wing with bandages. Once done, she left, not looking at any of the other prisoners as she went.

This time, the flutter pony mare remained in the room, watching them. Something about her seemed a little different, although Starry Skies could not place what. Regardless, it seemed more unlikely that attempts to befriend her would be any more effective than they had before. If anything, the resulting events would make it more difficult for friendly conversation.

So, Star waited, slowly taking in as much as she could around her. She studied as much of the room as she could see, and picked up every little sound that she could hear. From what she could gather, it was probably a part of a larger place. There were no windows, and the walls were stone or cement, so they were probably below ground level. There was nothing that she could hear beyond the room.

If she had some idea of how long they were unconscious, she could try to figure out how far they had traveled. There was too little information for her, and it was getting frustrating. Although the entire thing was frustrating anyways. She was in a major situation and knew way too little about the whole thing. Worse, her friends and family were stuck in the situation with her.

A dark part of her started contemplating the things she would like to do to Sleep Thief when this was all over. Like tossing her off the top of Canterlot mountain, or covering her in poison joke powder and dropping her off in the deepest part of The Everfree Forest. There were probably some pretty deep crevices in the old mines, far from any light and impossible to climb even if all four legs were not broken in multiple places from the fall. How much would it hurt for a unicorn to have their horn broken off?

Before Starry Skies could fully decide where to shove that horn, a groan got her attention, as well as the attention of everypony else in the room.

"POUND!" Pumpkin Cake cried out, throwing herself at the bars.

"Pumpkin?" Pound asked. He moved to sit up, but stopped, hissing in pain. "What happened?"

"The dummy tackled you and threw you back in the cage. How's your wing?"

Pound shifted to look at the wing that was bandaged up at his side. He moved it slightly, only to wince again.

"I think it's sprained," he said. "Not broken though. Won't be flying for a while." He let out a sigh. "So... any other ideas for us to get out of here?"

There was silence as they all looked back and forth among each other. Star had lost the hair clip with lock picks, which was the only tool she had brought with her (have to rectify that in the future), flight was not an option and would have done no good anyways, and the inhibitor rings kept Pumpkin and Flurry from using magic.

"I think we're just going to have to wait a while," Starry Skies huffed out. "If what Sleep Thief said earlier was any indication, it won't be too long."

She just had to hope that there would be enough time to stop whatever the mare was planning... or by some miracle, help showed up.

...Maybe she could help with that. It was a long shot, but worth trying.

Curling up in her cage, Star closed her eyes, took a slow breath, and cleared her mind.

Time passed. It was hard to say how much exactly, or how well Star's attempt succeeded. She could have just laid there, pretending to sleep as she tried, she could have dozed in and out, or she might have actually slept and just failed. Whatever the case, she did not recall having any dreams, and she certainly did not manage to contact Princess Luna or one of her daughters.

The sound of the door opening drew Starry Skies from her attempt. As she watched, several ponies came in: including sleep thief, a hippogriff, and...

Star got up and moved to get a better look. She even rubbed her eyes and smacked a cheek to make sure she was not still asleep or imagining it. But either it was either a very powerful hallucination, or else it was real.

Standing behind Sleep Thief was figure that had the basic shape of a pony. Except it had glittering scales in place of fur, and a fin where its mane would have been. There were additional fins on the side of its head, and a thick, fish-like tail behind it. Most notably was a glowing red jewel that rested at the base of the creature's throat.

So that's how she did it, Star thought. That was how she was able to put us to sleep.

"Good news, mares and stallions!" Sleep Thief announced as she approached the cages. "It's time to set our plan in motion. For various reasons, you all will be joining us." Her eyes narrowed. "Just don't try anything else."

The first cage to be opened was Pound Cake's. He was led out with two guards taking position close enough to spear him easily. Next was Pumpkin, who only got one.

"Remember" Sleep Thief said, "you try anything and your brother pays for it first."

Pumpkin's face went a little pale as she nodded.

Next, they came to Starry Skies's cage. It took a little while to get it unlocked as the lock still had the broken piece of the pick in it, but it did still open. As Star stepped out, three armed ponies -- including the hippogriff -- surrounded her with weapons drawn. A part of her felt a little flattered that she was seen as such a threat.

"Same goes for you, princess," Sleep Thief said as they released Flurry Heart. "You try anything funny, and your cousin pays for it first."

Flurry Heart's eyes narrowed, glaring at Sleep Thief while exiting the cage. It was pretty safe to guess that Flurry was biting back some very choice words she had in mind.

"Actually, I'm her aunt," Star blurted out. "That plus the fact that I am older than her means that she should respect me and listen to what I say." She let out a huff. "Although she never does." Star rolled her eyes and gave a shake of her. "Kids today, am I right?"

"You're not even a year older than me!" Flurry Heart snapped, turning to glare at Star. "Besides, I'm a princess, which means I'm royalty. So you should do what I tell you."

"Before this goes any further," Sleep Thief cut in, "this is my home and you are my guests. As such, it would be best if all of you listened to what I said." There were several jabbing motions from the assembled guards to emphasize her point.

"Geez," Star huffed with a roll of her eyes. "Somepony woke up on the wrong side of the crib this morning."

The statement got a scowl from Sleep Thief in response.

"Just get moving," she growled out.

As they made their way toward the door, Starry Skies moved to get next to the flutter pony mare. The walk to wherever they were going would give her a good excuse to talk, and the armed escort -- and threat of injuring selected loved ones to get other ponies to cooperate -- gave her a good topic of conversation to start with.

Up close, Star could see what was bothering her about the other mare. One of the eyes was slightly swollen, and the pale blue fur around it had a darker coloration.

"What happened?" Star asked, looking closely at the bruise.

"Nothing," the flutter pony said, looking away.

"Right," Star huffed, rolling her eyes. "It's always 'nothing' in situations like that."

"It's your fault anyways. If you hadn't have frustrated me enough to leave -- or tried to break out -- I wouldn't have gotten in trouble, and this wouldn't have happened."

"Right. It's my fault that somepony else hit you because they weren't happy." Star let out a snort. "Well at least you're not blaming yourself."

The flutter pony glared at Starry Skies a moment before letting out a snort and turning away.

"Fine," Star said. "But just remember: the pony that did that to you now is going to still have the power to do it in front of your foal."

"She would never do that!" the other mare nearly shouted, her eyes wide.

"Just like she would never hit a pregnant mare?" Star asked, taking special note of the 'she.'

"It's not like that," the flutter pony retorted. "Miss Thief is just a little stressed out right now. We are so close."

"And you think it will be better after? Say -- that if it does work -- she's not going to be stressed out while trying to rule a kingdom, or having to deal with rebellions?"

Whether the flutter pony had no reply or had decided it was not worth continuing, the conversation had stopped there. While it was not exactly what Starry Skies would have liked, she was fine with it. It would give the mare time to think about what she had said. The odds were extremely slim, but maybe it would be enough that the mare would end up helping to stop whatever was about to happen.

Provided there was enough time to stop it.

They made their way up the stairs and into a large room filled with more ponies that for some reason were dressed in robes that looked like they had been made from scraps of cloth. It was possible to guess who one of the robed figures was seeing as it was flanked by the two remaining dressing dummies. The group stood off toward one side, leaving a large painted circle in the center clear. The crowd parted as Sleep Thief moved forward, approaching what turned out to be a chest. The mare's horn lit up as she approached, opening the chest and pulling out the contents: some sort of woven white rope; two wands, one of which Star recognized; and The Alicorn Amulet.

Starry Skies stared at the items, eyes going wide. These were the ponies that had taken the amulet and the wands. Why? The amulet was obvious enough of course, it was meant to give Sleep Thief a boost in her power, but what were the wands for? Did the mare need even more magic than she thought she could get with her augmented power? Then there was the white rope. There had to be more to it than just an extra thick string to tie things together.

There was still a major lack of information.

After putting The Alicorn Amulet on, Sleep Thief turned and walked back toward them, stopping to face Pumpkin Cake.

"Here is what's going to happen," she said. "We are going to take your inhibitor off, and you are going to cast a one spell, and only one. If you try to cast any other spell, your friends will pay. Starting with your brother. Understood?"

"What spell?" Pumpkin asked, her gaze shifting between Sleep Thief and the pony looming over her.

"You are going to summon the being that claims to be Discord."

"What?!" Pumpkin Cake cried out, eyes going wide. "I can't do that. I don't know that spell!"

"Well surely one that has access to chaos magic and is the student of Twilight Sparkle" -- there were several hisses at the name -- "can come up with a spell that will bring him here." Sleep Thief's eyes narrowed. "Especially since the fate of her brother's wings might just depend on it."

The horn of a pony close to Pound Cake lit up, the magical aura engulfing the bandaged wing. A yelp escaped the stallion as his wing was yanked, causing his sister to pale.

Star tried to move forward, but was stopped by a spear pointed at her throat. From the corner of her eye, she could see Flurry Heart doing the same, with similar results.

"Okay!" Pumpkin shouted. "Okay. I'll try. Just... just stop."

The magic aura disappeared, releasing the wing. Pound let out a sigh, sagging slightly where he stood. One of the ponies beside Pumpkin reached up and grabbed the inhibitor ring, pulling it off. Pumpkin's jaw clenched as she stood back up, her eyes narrowing at Sleep Thief. For a moment, Star thought that Pumpkin was going to attack the other mare regardless.

Instead, she turned away, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. Letting it out, Pumpkin turned toward the center of the room. The pale blue aura of her magic lit up around her horn. The color became deeper as the aura grew larger, the energy building up. Pumpkin squeezed her eyes tighter and her jaw clenched as she collected more and more magic. Finally, she unleashed the power she had collected.

In a flash of multi-colored light, Discord appeared.

Thief of Chaos

Discord was inside a giant bubble that was more than half filled with what looked like dozens of miniature bathtubs. On his head was a shower cap, in his paw he held a brush with some dark substances on it, and in his eagle claw was a rubber Fluttershy. Opening his eyes, he looked around.

With a snap of his lion paw, the bubble and tiny bathtubs disappeared, leaving Discord standing with a towel around his chest.

"What's the meaning of this?" he growled out. "I was in the middle of a bubble bath for crying out loud."

"Sorry," Pumpkin said, "but they threatened my brother if I didn't."

"Oh, really?" Raising one eyebrow, Discord turned around to look at the crowd. "Who are they supposed to be?"

"Now!" Sleep Thief bellowed.

Several horns lit up, causing the room to become bright with multi-hued light. Instead of firing the magic directly at Discord, it was channeled downwards, causing the markings to glow. At the same time, Sleep Thief was picking up the two wands and the white rope.

"Okay," Discord sighed out, "I think we've had enough of this." Tossing the brush aside, he snapped his digits.

Nothing happened.

Blinking in confusion, Discord looked at his paw. He then snapped it again. There was a flicker of magic, but nothing else happened. He then tried it again, and again, and again still. Each time, nothing happened. With a snort, he raised his claws and slashed the air. Still, nothing happened.

"Fine," he huffed out. "We'll leave the old fashioned way."

He then floated up and started toward the door, only to slam into something. Magical chains shot up from the markings on the floor, wrapping around the draconequus and pulling him down to the ground.

With a wave of one wand, Sleep Thief vanished from sight, only to reappear inside the circle. Her eyes narrowed as a vicious grin spread across her lips.

"After much planning, we The Children of Discord -- of the true Discord -- have caught the weak impostor."

"Who are you calling an impostor, you little brat?" Discord growled, trying to get up. The magical auras grew brighter as more magic poured into the markings, the chains then pulling him back down hard.

"We have been waiting and working on this too long to let you get away easily," Sleep Thief stated. "And now, with these" -- she held up the wands and rope -- " we will be able to take the magic from you. Then we will be able to restore a true being of chaos to Equestria! And with, we The Children of Discord will be able to take control."

There was a cheer from several of the gathered ponies. From the corner of her eye, Starry Skies was able to notice that the flutter pony was not one of them. Maybe the idea was no longer appealing to her as much as it used to?

"Take my magic?" Discord asked, raising an eyebrow. "And how, precisely, are you going to do that with a piece of costume jewelry, two rusty antiques, and a cheap piece of rope?"

"I'm so glad you asked," Sleep Thief replied with a grin. She held up the rope. "You see, this isn't simply some 'cheap piece of rope' as you call it. It is actually a rope woven from the hair of Tirek."

Starry Skies tensed at the name, remembering the stories she heard about the creature. Then she saw something she never imagined that she would: Discord was scared. Star may have heard the stories, but Discord had lived through it. He had even been betrayed by the creature and had been stripped of his magic before. Granted it had been after he had betrayed The Elements in the first place, which made it a little poetic, but it looked like it was still traumatizing to the draconequus. He started to kick and thrash, tugging at the magical chains as hard as he could.

"With the 'piece of costume jewely' and 'rusty antiques' combined with my own power," Sleep Thief continued, "it should be enough to use some of the residual magic still in that hair, allowing me to drain your chaos magic." She then leaned down, eyes narrowing. "And if you were the real Discord, you would have been able to get out of all this, you faker."

Star decided she had heard enough. She did not know if the plan would work or not, but she did not want to take that risk. Letting a mentally unstable pony obtain reality warping powers and an insanity inducing artifact had to be the top of the list when it came to dangerous and bad (and if it was not, Star did not want to face whatever was above it).

Dropping to her stomach, Star got below the edges of the weapons pointed at her. Turning her attention to one of the guards, she kicked out with a leg, driving her hoof hard as she could into the tarsal joint of the front leg. There was an audible pop as the joint was dislocated, making the leg unable to support the pony's weight. Combined with the fact the other leg had been lifted to hold the weapon, and the pony had no front end support. As he dropped, Star raised her leg to drive her hoof into his jaw.

Grabbing the dropped spear, she shot up and threw it at Sleep Thief.

There was a clang and a hum as the metal spear tip struck a magic barrier and bounced off.

Before she could fully process what had happened, something slammed into Star's back and and knocked her to the ground. Something sharp poked into her flank, causing her to wince and clench her jaw.

"Try something like that again," a voice growled out, "and not only will we make you regret it, but the others will pay as well."

Eyes narrowed, she turned to look at the pony that spoke.

"When we get out of this," she said in a low voice, "I'm going to rip your throat out with my teeth." She then bared them, showing the razor sharp fangs. A part of her took pleasure in how the mare turned pale at the sight.

The rest of her was mentally kicking herself. They were using multiple spells to keep Discord trapped. Of course it would not so easily be penetrated by something. If she wanted to take it out, she would have to take most -- if not all -- of the ponies that were powering the containment spell. If she did that, then Discord would be free and able to use his magic, so the spear would have been needless. Alternatively, maybe it would have been enough to take out one pony charging it. If she had thought of that, then she could have gotten one free shot before being taken down.

After being yanked up onto her hooves, Star was once again surrounded and stuck doing nothing but watch what was happening.

In the ring, Sleep Thief's horn was growing brighter with her golden aura of magic, engulfing the wands and the rope of Tirek hair. The three items floated above the mare, with a wand on each side. Slowly, they moved closer to each other. The hair touched the two wands, then wrapped around the handles.

There was a flare of the magic aura as it shifted from golden yellow to more of a molten orange. The flare passed and the aura grew smaller, and smaller, pulling in around the now combined three objects. Before long, the aura had nearly vanished, the only sign it was still there was the items still floating, and the tint of burning orange to them.

A beam of energy shot out from the woven Tirek hair and struck Discord between the eyes. The magic then spread out, working across his face and down his body as it engulfed him completely. As it did, he went limp and his eyes glassed over. Then his jaw opened wide.

Sleep Thief grinned widely before opening her own mouth as well.

A strange beam of energy shot out from Discord's mouth. It was nearly black, with streaks of deep red and swirling bubbles of blue and purple. As the magic pulled away from Discord, his eyes glassed over as the color faded from his body.

Sleep Thief's eyes went wide as the power struck her, forcing her jaw open wider to the point that must have been painful. Her body glowed with magic, the white coated form engulfed in the molten light. There was a pulse of energy, which faded to reveal a larger, leaner version of Sleep Thief.

When the magic stopped, the items fell to the floor as the two of them collapsed. The horns of the ponies around them stopped glowing, dropping the containment spell. Marionette ran forward, hood dropping from his robe to confirm his identity. One of the dressing dummies moved with him. Getting beside the fallen Sleep Thief, the stallion reached down to pull her up.

"Are you okay, boss?" he asked.

"I..." the mare started. "I... I need..."

Her eyes opened wide as she lunged at Marionette.

"MORE!"

Pinning Marionette down, Sleep Thief's horn lit up as she opened her mouth again. The stallion tensed, eyes wide as his own horn lit up. The power shot from Marionette's horn to Sleep Thief's mouth, disappearing. As it did, the dressing dummies collapsed to the floor.

When the magic stopped, Sleep Thief let the unconscious stallion drop to the floor. She then turned to look at all the ponies in the room, her eyes glowing red.

"This is incredible," she said, looking around. "I can feel it, the little bits of chaotic magic in all of you." Her eyes and the amulet flared with red energy. "And I want it all!"

There was a massive pulse of energy that slammed into everypony, knocking them back. Not enough to even wind them, but enough that it would take a second to get up and moving. Some of the ponies collected cried out as they got up, running for the doorways. There was a thump as they slammed into a wall of magic. More and more moved toward it, pressing against it the barrier, but it was no use. It refused to budge.

They were trapped.

Sleep Thief then reached out with her power and grabbed the hippogriff. A squawk escaped him as he was pulled forward, yanked directly in front of the power hungry mare. Grabbing him, Sleep Thief opened her mouth and started to drain him as well.

This time, something strange happened. As the hippogriff was drained of magic, it started to change. Where the two halves met, the feathers began disappearing, being replaced by fur of his coat color. The change continued up along the body as it continued. The wings remained the same, but at the forelegs, the lower half grew thicker as the talons shrank down to give way to hooves. Reaching the head, the beak softened and turned into an equine muzzle.

Where once there had been a hippogriff, there was now a pegasus.

When the power had stopped, Sleep Thief dropped him. One of her forelegs had turned into that of a bird, ending in a set of black talons.

"So tasty," she moaned out. "Now, who's next?" She then grabbed another pony, an earth mare this time.

Considering everything that was currently going on, it seemed safe to assume that none of the ponies stuck there were very concerned with the hostages. Pushing her way from the would-be guards, Starry Skies took off and flew toward Princess Flurry Heart, keeping as much space away from Sleep Thief as she could manage. As soon as she landed, Star grabbed the ring on Flurry's horn and pulled it off.

"Thanks," Flurry said, her magic flickering for a second.

"No problem. Now we need to get the Cakes and come up with a plan."

"Stay close to me," Flurry said before lighting her horn up fully. There was a flash of pale yellow light and a popping sound as the two of them were teleported to where The Cake Twins were.

None of the ponies around them seemed to care at the moment, meaning there was no reason to fight.

"That was convenient," Starry Skies said. "Can you teleport out of here?"

"I don't know where here is," Flurry Heart answered, "and I don't know Ponyville very well either. Without that, I have no way of knowing where to teleport to. We don't even know how far below ground we are."

"Pumpkin?"

"Sorry, but summoning Discord drained most of my magic. I could maybe teleport us to the other side of the door, but that would be it." Pumpkin looked around. "Although, I don't know if we can teleport through this barrier to begin with."

This was not what Starry Skies wanted to hear. She wanted them to say that yes, they could teleport. Easily, in fact, and with multiple ponies. That way, the two of them could get Pound Cake, Discord, and a bunch of the other ponies out and away from the now insane and (literally?) power hungry Sleep Thief.

"We still need to try," she said. "Flurry, see if you can teleport with Pound to the outside of the doorway."

"Hold on," Pound said. "I wanna help."

"You're already injured," Star replied, "and we can't get too close to Sleep Thief, or she'll feed off us."

There was a scream as another pony was grabbed. Sleep Thief wrapped the eagle talon around their neck, newly developed muscles tensing. A single feathered wing stuck out from her shoulder.

"This would be interesting if it weren't so scary," Pumpkin mumbled.

"Flurry," Star repeated. "Now. Please."

"Right." Flurry closed her eyes and lit up her horn. There was a flash as she and Pound Cake disappeared, only to reappear a second later in the same spot. The two ponies wobbled a moment, their eyes unfocused and spinning.

"No good," Flurry Heart said, her words slightly slurring before she gave her head a hard shake. "It's blocking the way out."

Star's jaw clenched as she bit down on her frustration. They had to do something.

Before she could come up with at least part of a plan, a molten orange aura wrapped Princess Flurry Heart. A yelp escaped the alicorn as she was yanked off her hooves.

"FLURRY!" Star cried out, grabbing onto one of Flurry's legs. Tensing, wings flapping hard, she tried to pull her cousin loose of the mad mare's grasp. Hooves quickly wrapped around her flank, and she was soon engulfed in a pale blue magical aura.

The Cakes were trying to stop it too.

"Pumpkin, ca--"

There was a snapping sound as Flurry Heart was yanked from their grasp and brought before Sleep Thief. A smile spread across the mare's face, revealing multiple sets of fangs.

"I forgot we had a princess among us," she said. "I wonder how much stronger your power will make me." Her wings -- one feathered and the other insect-like -- flickered in excitement. Reaching out with her eagle talon, she grabbed Flurry Heart by the throat and opened her mouth wide.

Chaotic Battle

Princess Flurry Heart was caught in the magic of Sleep Thief. The unicorn turned strange chimeric creature grinned, licking her lip. Her eagle talon grip tightened on the alicorn as she pulled her closer, their lips almost touching. Sleep Thief opened her mouth wide, eyes closing as she got ready to feed of the alicorn's magic.

Nothing happened.

Sleep Thief opened her eyes and furrowed her brow. She looked Flurry Heart a moment before opening her mouth again.

"What's going on?" Sleep Thief asked. "Why can't I drain you?"

Two thoughts went through Starry Skies's mind. One was a possible explanation to the question. The other was that their opponent was distracted by the confusion.

Flapping her wings hard, Star shot up toward the ceiling, gaining as much speed as she could in the short distance. Twisting in the air, she aimed for Sleep Thief and pushed off with all her might. Her wings continued to flap as she turned again, kicking out. Star slammed into her opponent, pressing down with all her weight and momentum. There was a grunt from the mutated mare, and Star felt something pop beneath her.

Grabbing Flurry Heart, she flew away from Sleep Thief.

"Bubble her!" Star shouted.

Flurry Heart's horn lit up as a bubble shield formed around Sleep Thief, who was already getting back up. Her eyes narrowed as she bared her teeth, her own unicorn horn lighting up. The Alicorn Amulet around her neck pulsed as the jewel glowed.

"You think this can stop me?" she snarled out, heading toward The Cake Twins.

Sleep Thief's magic wrapped around the dressing dummies. The figures became animated once more, pushing to get back up. Stitches popped and fabric tore as spikes forced their way out of the dummies' backs. Their mouths opened to reveal rows of pointy wooden teeth. The three dummies moved to line up as they approached Star, Flurry, Pumpkin, and Pound.

"I'm open to ideas," Star said as she stood between the dummies and the other ponies.

"Do something," Pound said, poking his sister in the side.

"Like what?"

"I don't know. I'm not a unicorn. But you must have enough energy to try something."

Pumpkin let out a sigh and turned her attention toward the three dressing dummies. Her horn lit up as she shot a blast of magic at the trio of targets.

The entire room flashed pale blue.

Pumpkin Cake, Pound Cake, Flurry Heart, and Starry Skies were all sitting in front row seats, facing a catwalk. Pound was holding a fan in one hoof, and Star was wearing sunglasses. Music was playing and lights were dancing as the dressing dummies made their way along the catwalk.

Star pulled down her sunglasses to get a better look. One was wearing a dress that was inspired by either sunrise or sunset -- the top was white and turned yellow, shifting through pink and purple before ending in a midnight blue -- and was reaching the end of the walkway. It stopped and struck a pose before turning around and heading back the way it came.

All eyes turned to Pumpkin Cake, who was staring wide-eyed and open-mouthed.

"What did you do?" Flurry asked.

"I don't know," Pumpkin replied. "I didn't think of an actual spell, I just blasted them with magic and hoped they would stop wanting to attack us."

"Well they definitely don't want to attack us," Pound said, watching one of the dummies walk along in a pink and powder blue harlequin suit, complete with hat and jester staff.

Behind them sat some of the other ponies. None of them were wearing their robes anymore, and most of them seemed to be very confused by the change in venue. On the other side of the catwalk sat a bubble-free Sleep Thief, with Discord beside her and the ponies she already drained surrounding her.

The shock of what happened was passing quickly, her attention turning toward the four of them. Wings spread wide, she took off from her seat to fly at them.

"SHIELD!" Starry Skies bellowed.

Magic from Flurry Heart and Pumpkin Cake flared up at the same side, the energy mixing to create a green shield around them. It was up just in time to stop Sleep Thief, her entire body slamming into the barrier and flattening into a pancake. She popped back a second later, returning to her proper shape. Eyes narrowing, her claw dug at the shield as she slammed her hoof against it.

"Little pigs, little pigs, let me in." She ran her claw along the shield, the magic crackling around the tips of the talons. "I just want a snack." Sticking her tongue (which was way too long and looked more like a snake's), she gave the barrier a lick.

"Okay," Star said as she stepped back from Sleep Thief, "we can't just stay here with the barrier and wait for her to stop, but we can't let her get the others either. Flurry Heart might be the only safe from her, and she could drain the rest of us of...who knows what." Her eyes flicked across to where Discord and the drained ponies still remained. "So, anypony have an idea on what to do?"

"What about the wands and hair?" Pound asked. "If we got those, would we be able to reverse the spell?"

He, Star, and Flurry all turned to Pumpkin Cake. Pumpkin tensed as all attention was on her, taking a step back.

"Why are you all looking at me?"

"You're Twilight's student, and know the most about magic," Star answered. "Is it possible?"

Pumpkin Cake shifted in place, chewing on her lip. Her eyes shifted as she did, glassing over as she considered.

"It's possible," she finally answered, "but it could also end up causing the pony to use it to absorb the power from her instead."

Starry Skies shifted, considering it for a moment. The first option would be to let Flurry or Pumpkin take the power. Since Flurry could not be absorbed, it was possible that she would not be able to absorb the power from Sleep Thief either. If that was the case, then it would have to be Pumpkin Cake that used the spell.

...that was, unless they could cast it on another pony.

Or draconequus.

"Would you be able to cast it and have Discord be the target of receiving the energy?"

"...maybe?" Pumpkin replied, tilting her head. "I mean, I'm not even sure it will work at all."

Star closed her eyes and rubbed at her head. Her attempt to think was cut short by a loud buzzing noise, followed by cries of pain from Flurry and Pumpkin.

On the outside, Sleep Thief had summoned a chainsaw and was pressing the chain against the barrier. There were sparks of energy as the spinning chain bit and tore at the shield, leaving a line in it. If Flurry Heart and Pumpkin Cake's reaction were any indication, the two of them could feel it, and it was painful.

"Okay, we're out of time for planning," Star said. "So here's what we're going to do. When I say, drop the shield. Pumpkin and Pound, you two get the artifacts and try to restore Discord. Flurry and I will try to keep Sleep Thief busy."

And dear Luna please don't let her catch me, she thought.

"Got it?"

Pound, Pumpkin, and Flurry nodded.

"Okay. Get ready."

Star moved to be directly beneath where Sleep Thief stood, Princess Flurry Heart standing next to her. The Cake Twins moved away from their spot, heading to the edge that hopefully would be closest to where the wands and hair had been dropped.

"So, once we drop the shield, what do we do?" Flurry asked.

"I tackle her to the ceiling and you pin her there?" Star suggested. "That should buy us a few minutes." Her tongue flicked out to lick her lips as she glanced up at the mutated mare again. "Just... be sure to put the shield between us before she grabs me and tries to suck my power."

"Don't worry," Flurry assured with a smile. "I have a pretty good idea how you feel about sucking." The smile turned into a full grin at the last part.

Did she just...

With a shake of her head, Star pushed the thought aside. Innuendo or not, true or not, now was not the time to think about it. Instead she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, slowly letting it out. With it, Star tried to quiet her mind and focus, reaching that relaxed but ready state she had been told about.

She had never really been able to reach that state. She could already feel her entire body tensing.

"Now!" she called out.

The shield flickered blue and yellow before vanishing from sight. As soon as it did, Starry Skies shot up.

When the shield vanished, there was a moment where confusion spread across Sleep Thief's face. It was short lived, but there, fading as gravity asserted its hold and started to pull her down.

Slipping between the mare and her chainsaw, Starry Skies slammed herself into Sleep Thief pushing up with her entire body. A thud shook through her as the two of them hit the ceiling. Star threw a punch into the other mare's stomach, knocking the air from her lungs and hopefully keeping her disoriented for a while longer.

A scream filled Star's ears.

Flurry!

When Starry Skies had tackled the monstrous Sleep Thief, she had not noticed that Sleep Thief had dropped the chainsaw she had been using. Instead of vanishing after, it had fallen.

Right to where Flurry Heart had been standing.

From where she was, Star could see the massive cut in Flurry's side, blood oozing from it.

Eyes wide and guilt burning at her stomach, Star made her way to Flurry Heart. Her front hooves reached out, pressing on the skin around the wound and trying to push it close.

"Sorrysorrysorry!" She had to stop the bleeding. She had to make sure that Flurry Heart would get out of this alive. This was Star's fault. She had been the one who had come up with this idea. It had been her who had forgotten about the chainsaw and had told Flurry to help distract Sleep Thief. She did not want an innocent pony to get hurt, she certainly did not want Flurry to get hurt, and she definitely did not want her to die.

A yellow aura wrapped around her as she was suddenly yanked toward Flurry Heart, who was jumping backwards.

Sleep Thief slammed down where the two of them had been standing. She glared at the two, a very unponylike growl bubbling from her throat.

"Don't worry about me," Flurry said. "Worry about her."

"Right," Star replied, turning to their opponent. If she wanted to get Flurry Heart out of here and to a hospital, they would have to deal with Sleep Thief first. Pushing all of her fear and guilt down as far as she could, Starry Skies focused all of her attention on Sleep Thief.

"So, little bat," Sleep Thief said with a smirk. "What do you think--"

Screaming at the top of her lungs, Starry Skies threw herself forward, lunging at Sleep Thief as fast as she could. The attack caused Sleep Thief to freeze for a second, which was perfect since she was not actually Star's target. Instead, Star shot past the mutated mare and grabbed the chainsaw. Once she had it, she gave the engine a good rev before charging at her opponent with it. Shouting again, Starry Skies swung for one of the mare's legs.

As soon as it touched, the chainsaw disappeared.

Sleep Thief threw her head back and laughed.

"Foolish mortal! Did you truly think that you could injure me with my own creation? I am a being of chaos now. And not some pathetic would be faker like that impostor Discord."

She grabbed Star with the talon and slammed her down against the floor. There was a burst of pain in Star's back as her wings hit the stone. Even accounting for the increase in size and muscle mass, Sleep Thief was surprisingly strong. The claws flexed around Star, digging into the stone floor and pinning the bat pony down easily. Sleep Thief's grin widened as she leaned in.

"I was going to get around to you eventually." Her tongue slipped out, stretching to run across Starry Skies's cheek. "Guess I'll enjoy taking you now." She leaned in closer opening her mouth.

Lunging up, Starry Skies opened her own mouth as well. As soon as she felt flesh in her mouth, she bit down hard. Her razor sharp fangs sank into Sleep Thief's nose, a squirt of blood filling Star's mouth. Her jaw clenched as she pressed as hard as she could, then yanked backwards.

Sleep Thief screamed as blood poured from the gashes on her snout. Sitting up, she brought her front limbs to her nose, pressing down on the wound.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Starry Skies pulled her hind legs in tight then kicked out. Her hooves struck her opponent in the chest, making her lose the already precarious balance to fall backwards. Quick as she could, Starry Skies rolled to her hooves and jumped up. She twisted her body as she rolled, bringing all her weight down onto her elbow as she drove it into the other mare's stomach.

Sleep Thief's tail wrapped around Star's middle, pulling her off and throwing her across the room. Starry Skies bounced against the floor, hitting her ribs in the process, but managed to roll with it and land on her hooves. Her side burned and ached, but she could move just fine.

It seemed that Sleep Thief was not so fortunate. She was still lying on the floor, her front limbs pressing against her chest as she gasped out, eyes wide. Her hind legs kicked and twitched as she squirmed in place.

Starry Skies thought that she must have hit her in the stomach harder than she thought. Slowly, she moved closer, watching in case the other mare recovered or turned out to be faking it.

Sleep Thief's eyes and cheeks started to bulge before her mouth burst open. Out shot a blast of the chaotic energy she had stolen from Discord, stopping a foot in the air. More of the energy flowed out of the prone mare, collecting in on itself and building a ball of pure chaos magic.

As the ball continued to grow, several smaller balls of different colored energy appeared. These shot across the room to the previously attacked ponies, forcing their ways back into the bodies.

Among them was Discord, Pumpkin Cake, and Pound Cake. Discord was sprawled out in one of the chairs. Behind him was Pound, standing on something so they were about the same height. Next to them stood Pumpkin Cake, her eyes closed and horn glowing as her magic held the wands and hair.

The ball of chaos magic grew larger and larger. As it did, Sleep Thief shrank smaller and smaller.

"Now!" Pumpkin called out.

Pound Cake grabbed a hold of Discord's head and lifted to pull his mouth open.

The chaos energy then shot a beam at the unconscious Discord, striking him in the mouth and disappearing back down his throat. As soon as it started, his eyes shot open, the glassiness vanishing from them. Getting up from his seat, he walked toward the prone pony. With each step, his movement grew steadier.

By the time he was standing above Sleep Thief, he looked pretty much back to normal.

However, the same could not be said for her. When the loss of energy had stopped, Sleep Thief had returned to her original size, but still had the altered body parts.

Discord placed his fists on his side, glaring down at the now unconscious mare.

"Well, I think that has been enough excitement for one day. I'll take those."

He then snapped his lion paw, and the wands and hair appeared beside him.

"And I'll deal with...these." He motioned toward the ponies surrounding them. "As for you four..."

"Wa--"

Discord snapped his eagle claw.

"--it!" Starry Skies cried out.

She, Flurry Heart, Pumpkin Cake and Pound Cake were now standing in the lobby of the Ponyville hospital, the nurse at the desk staring at them with wide eyes.

The Wedding Day

Starry Skies looked over the letter she had finished, letting the last of the ink dry and making absolutely certain there were no errors that she had missed. Although at this point, it hardly mattered. After going through five drafts, there was not enough time to start completely over. It would just have to do as it was.

Folding it carefully, she put it into the envelope, sealed it, and slipped it into the waistline of her dress. Star then turned to the mirror, making sure that her mane was still in place, and the little bit of make-up that had been insisted upon was properly applied.

A knock at the door got her attention.

"Come in," Star called out, turning around.

The door opened and Princess Flurry Heart stepped into the room. She smiled as she walked in, wearing a dress that matched Star's, although with a paler shade of purple ("to better complement the mane and contrast with the pink without clashing," according to Rarity).

"Hey Star, could you help me with my ribbon? I can't seem to get it quite right for some reason."

"Sure," Star relied as she walked toward Flurry Heart. Flurry gave a smile as she turned around, letting Star see the ribbon and take a hold of it in her wings. As she worked, her gaze drifted toward Flurry's side. The dress did an excellent job of hiding the stitches -- almost impossible to see if she did not know exactly where to look --- but Star knew exactly where they were. She even knew the exact number.

"Flurry," Star said softly as she finished the bow, "about what happened. I--"

"Stop!" Flurry Heart ordered. She turned to face Star. "You apologized while we were fighting Sleep Thief, and at the hospital." Reaching up, Flurry placed a hoof against Star's cheek. "And I told you then, it wasn't your fault."

"But it was," Star replied. "The whole thing was my plan, and I didn't think about the chainsaw beyond getting past it. If it hadn't been for me, you wouldn't have been underneath to get hit by it. For Tartarus's sake, you weren't even the one they were after. If you hadn't been with me and Pumpkin--"

A hoof pressed against her mouth, cutting her off.

"At best," Flurry said slowly, "yes, you might have defeated her and nopony would have been seriously hurt." She pulled her hoof away, her gaze softening. "At worst, she would have fed on the chaos magic of all the ponies there, including you and The Cake Twins, then tried to take over Equestria as she intended. If that had happened, who knows how many ponies would have gotten hurt trying to stop her." She then leaned closer. "And I would have tried to stop her too, just like Mom and Dad, or Twilight and her friends, or Princess Celestia and Princess Luna."

Turning, she looked toward the window.

"Some day, I'm going to be the ruler of The Crystal Empire. Which means that part of my job will be keeping it and the ponies that live there safe. If that means putting myself at risk, then so be it. I don't want to get hurt, but I would rather put myself in danger than let somepony else get hurt."

she tilted her head to look at Star from the corner of her head.

"And if that does happen, I hope that there's a pony there like you to try and get us all out alive."

Although she knew it was meant well, Flurry Heart's words did not bring Starry Skies any comfort. Even if Flurry Heart was willing to put herself at risk, it was Star's duty as an older family member and her job as a Shadowbolt to keep her safe. Not just Flurry either. If she had been better at her job, Pound would not have been hurt, they would never have been abducted, and Discord would have never been captured and drained of magic. She should have been able to keep the whole thing from happening.

Still, Flurry Heart meant well. So Starry Skies put on her best smile.

"Thanks."

"Hey, that's what family does," Flurry said with a smile. "We stick up for each other and help each other out."

"Okay," Star said with a roll of her eyes. "I think that's enough sappiness from Princess Fluffy Butt for one day. Any other mushiness should be between the bride and groom."

"Ah, yes," Flurry replied, giving an eye roll of her own. "There's that rarely seen romantic side of you I've heard about."

"Well we don't all grow up with a hopeless romantic for a mom and spend out free time reading trashy romance novels."

"They are not trashy!"

"Fine. They aren't trashy. But they are cheesy."

"No they're not!"

"'Oh, my dearest darling,'" Star said in a falsely deep voice, "'you are the most beautiful mare I have ever seen. Your coat is like cherry blossoms, and your eyes the sun.'"

She let out a snort before continuing in her normal voice.

"They're so cheesy, Twilight's afraid of them."

"And that unicorn detective monster hunter series you read is so original?" Flurry asked as she made her way for the door.

"Hey!" Star snapped as she chased after the alicorn. "Those books are going to be classics someday."

Flurry let out a snort.

"Right. And I'm going to use the mirror to go to that weird human world."

"Well now that you said it..." Star said, letting the statement trail off.

As they made their way through the castle, the two continued to verbally pick at each other, always trying to keep it light and only teasing the other harmlessly. It stopped as they reached the foyer, the two stopping and giving each other one last check over. Satisfied, the two of them stepped out of the castle.

Outside, the decoration for a grand wedding had been set up. A bright red carpet was rolled out, leading to a white platform where several columns had been set up. Around each column spiraled streamers of pink, green, pale violet, and purple. On each side of the walkway were a large number of cushioned chairs, some of which were already occupied by guests on both sides. Also on both sides (most likely for symmetry) were serving tables. On one table were a pair of ice sculptures, one of a pony (the bride), and one of a dragon (the groom). On the other table was a large single ice sculpture of the two embraced together in the way that looked like they were dancing. Each table also had a variety of drinks and treats. There was a chocolate fountain, a cheese fountain, and multiple bowls filled with nothing but gemstones.

A strange part of Starry Skies wondered: what would a chocolate covered ruby taste like? Or a cheesey sapphire? This also led to a momentary wondering of which gemstone went better with which material. Would the type of gem actually affect the flavor of the coating it was mixed with?

"There are my parents," Flurry said. "I'm going to have to sit with them... aaand... Dad's already crying." She let out a huff and shook her head. "I get it's an extra big deal since this is Uncle Spike, but still. He was Captain of the guard and is Prince Consort of The Crystal Empire. You would think he would be better and acting stoic and calm."

Starry Skies watched as Princess Flurry Heart made her toward her waiting parents. The change from slightly embarrassed teen to regal royal member happened quickly as she went. Before even making it halfway to Shining Armor and Cadance, Flurry Heart looked composed and proper. Star was not even sure if she could actually make signs of the underlying emotions, or was simply imagining it since she believed it was there.

Her own parents were nowhere to be seen. Most likely, they along with Twilight Sparkle were with Spike, dealing with last minute issues and nerves.

However, she did find Princess Luna and her daughters. The three of them were looking around the garden, with Princess Luna leaning forward to sniff at a Moon Rose.

Well, now's a good a time as any, Star thought as she walked toward the princess. Sooner the better, and quick like a band-aid.

Princess Nightmare Moon was the first to notice Starry Skies approaching. A small smile spread across her lips, a tip of fang slipping out.

"Hello Starry Skies," Nightmare purred out. "How nice to see you." Her smile widened as her eyes narrowed. "How is my favorite bat pony?"

"Princess Moon," Star said as she gave a bow, "Princess Tantabus, Princess Luna. It is good to see you all well." Straightening up, she turned her full attention to Luna. "May I speak with you on about a professional matter?"

Princess Luna turned from the flowers to Starry Skies. Her lips pursed as her eyes narrowed, studying the bat pony for a moment.

"Moon," Princess Luna finally said, "please take Tantabus to your seats and make certain that she does not get too bored."

"But mother, I wish to be involved in this," Nightmare stated.

"Do not take my politeness for this being a request."

Nightmare's ears dropped as she glared at her mother, lips pursed.

"Fine," she snorted out. "Come on, Tanty." Pressing a wing against her little sister, she walked off, making extra certain to stomp her hooves as she went.

Princess Luna watched them go before letting out a sigh and shaking her head.

"At times, I wonder if her behavior is merely typical teenage surliness, or a manifestation of the anger that created the original Nightmare Moon," she said. Luna then turned back to Star. "Now, what is it you wish to speak with me about?"

After looking around to be certain that there were no ponies watching them (although Nightmare clearly was) or could hear what they were saying, Starry Skies reached into her waistline, pulled out the envelope and passed it to the princess. Princess Luna's horn lit up as she took it, one eyebrow raising as she pulled it closer.

"What is this?"

"My letter of resignation," Starry Skies answered.

The statement drew Princess Luna's attention back to the other mare. The eyebrow raised higher as she tilted her head slightly.

"You wish to resign from your position with me?"

Star looked up at the princess, then down at the ground. Her entire body sagged slightly under the weight of guilt. Her ears drooped as she stared at her hooves. She could still see it all in front of her.

"In light of what happened," Star said softly, "I think it's for the best."

Standing like a statue, Luna stared a moment longer. Star did not look up, but she could feel the princess's gaze on her, studying her.

"I do not agree," Luna declared, making Star look up at her, "nor do I accept."

The magic around her horn flared brighter, and the envelope burst into flames. The fire consumed the letter quickly, leaving nothing but gray ashes, which Luna released from her magical grip.

Starry Skies could only stare wide-eyed as the remnants were scattered by the wind.

"You... you... you can't do that," she stuttered out.

"I believe that I already have," Luna stated. "I am not permitting you to resign from your position."

"But... but Flurry Heart. And Pound Cake. They got hurt."

"Indeed they did," Luna acknowledged with a nod, "and from what I have read of their reports, neither of them place any blame on you. Nor does Pumpkin Cake and Discord."

Discord. Star had not seen him around since he zapped them to the hospital. She had not even had the chance to speak to Fluttershy and see if she had talked to him. If Princess Luna knew that Discord did not blame her, then that would mean that he had said something about the event, mostly likely to Celestia. Although that hardly changed anything. He was not around when they were in the cages, and had been rendered unconscious -- or at least incapacitated -- during the fight with Sleep Thief.

"I am aware that such does not allay the guilt that one places upon oneself," Luna said, bring Starry Skies from her thoughts. "It is true that there are things that you can now see which could have been done differently, but that is always the case."

Stepping forward, Luna reached out with a wing and ran a feather along Star's cheek.

"However, that does not mean that we should give up when we make mistakes, even if it leads to others getting hurt." She turned to look at where her daughters had gone. "I have learned through personal experience that such leads to isolation and suffering only of oneself." She then turned back to Star and smiled. "That does not mean that we should simply forget what happened. Instead, we should learn from it. Try and keep such a thing from occurring again. While I tend to avoid comparing you to your siblings, I believe that is a way in which you all excel. In light of what has happened, you will in the future try all the harder to prevent risk to either willing allies or innocent bystanders."

Luna's wing pulled away as she stepped back.

"Which is why I have rejected your resignation, Starry Skies. You may have lost faith in yourself for the moment, but I have not. Yes, you may have made mistakes, but you shall learn from them, and try to avoid making those same ones in the future. Remember, one of the first ponies I hired, and the one that has been one of my most successful, was one that wished to make amends for the mistakes she made in her past. Something that I myself have needed to do as well. As such, I would be a poor friend, a bad princess, and a hypocrite if I did not allow you to do the same.

"Now if you will excuse me, I wish to join my daughters and wait for the start of this momentous occasion."

She turned to walk away, leaving Starry Skies standing there a moment.

It was a lot to think about, but now was not the time. Her brother was about to get married. This was to be a happy occasion, one of the most important in Spike's life. It would not do for her to be sulking around and wallowing in her own guilt and self-pity. For the sake of her family -- and especially for her brother, the groom -- Star pushed all of her feeling down as deep as she could to deal with some other time. Straightening up and putting a smile on her face, she made her way to her seat.

It was not long before she was joined by the rest of her family and the wedding ceremony started. They all sat there, watching as the dragon that had become a part of their family got married.

As far as everyone involved was concerned, it was perfect.