Tapping away at a keyboard with skill and precision housed only by a seasoned computer veteran, Shimmer was on the verge of finishing a project she had been chipping away at for several hours. She had lost progress a few days back due to a corrupted file; causing her to curse herself for not thinking to back it up like she usually would. She made a mental note to remember to run a backup more periodically, or at the very least set something up that would automate the process.

Regardless, she tapped away at keys indiscriminately with her eyes locked on the screen. Perched upon her nose were her work glasses, designed with the proper blue light reduction to assist in reducing eye strain when working on computers (especially in dark rooms as Shimmer always seemed to have a fondness for). Her hair was locked up in a bun, and it was perhaps the messiest anyone would ever see the sleep-deprived girl if she had gone out looking as such.

Checking the time in the corner of the computer screen she could see it was 8:12 AM, she had been up all night running on sugarless coffee and a few fruits she had brought with her. Converting those things into energy proved successful as she didn’t even feel tired yet, though she longed for a nice hot bath the moment her work was done. Shimmer told herself she wouldn’t stop until she was completely finished with this current project.

Pausing for a brief moment she leaned back and rubbed her temples before giving an audible sigh to no one in particular. Her eyes darted around her private server room seeing little more than computer equipment, poor lighting, and metal walls. While Shimmer enjoyed a nicely decorated home, this was definitely the one room she chose practical over stylish, even her lab had a little Feng Shui to it.

The determination came back to her as she came back forward and locked eyes with the computer screen again, tapping away at lightning speed and scanning over what she was putting into text form to check for any and all errors.

A few more keystrokes, groans, and a yawn finally reaching her, and she was satisfied with what she had created. Hitting the save function for perhaps the twelfth time in ten minutes, she nodded and smirked as she sat back, satisfied with herself for completing such a long project.

She stretched and opened the newly created program and picked up her cup of coffee as she pulled away from her desk and placed the chair back in front of it.

It took a bit of effort, but the end result should, in theory, save her more work in the long run. Going over her data on her private server herself would take weeks if not months to check for any abnormalities caused by the mysterious “Ghost”. Instead, Shimmer decided it was best to let technology do the work for her, and had programmed a new program that would examine all the data for her looking for any traces of this “Ghost” and report back to her. Given the number of high-resolution photos, video logs, and pages upon pages of text within the server, Shimmer was certain the automated process would likely take at minimum a day or two to go through it, even with the processing power available to her.

Scratching her neck she picked up her cell phone from the desk and with a coffee in the other, she opened the door and retreated back to her hallway.

The door and wall concealing her server room closed behind her and she looked down at her phone and flicked it off of airplane mode. As a recent safety precaution, she had decided to not bring any kind of wireless communication into that room.

A short walk and an elevator later and Shimmer was entering her own bedroom, setting her coffee down after a sip onto her vanity while she thumbed her phone.

A part of her realized a status report was in order and she quickly typed up an email.

Hey, it’s me again.

I was up all night creating a program to try and see if it can sniff out any traces of Ghost. Super tired, but it should be worth it if it bears fruit. We’re about to find out how thorough Ghost really is. It should give me a good idea of what level of a hacker we’re dealing with here.

Anyways, the process should take a day or two, so I’ll update you when it’s done to see what I’ve learned. I know you’re not the most computer savvy, and you’re more about noticing fine details, but our Ghost I am wagering is not the most either, and that is what I’m counting on. One way or another we’ll figure out who they are and what they want with my research.

Let me know if anything changes on your end.

S.

Finishing the email, Shimmer tapped send on her iPhone and was about to set it down so she could start a bath when she got a text message. Checking the time again, she saw it was only8:51 AM so that instantly ruled out the possibility of it being someone as lazy as Rainbow Dash whom wouldn’t roll out of bed until later in the day on a weekend.

She smiled as she saw Moondancer’s name upon the text.

Hey, I was hoping we could maybe get a bite together? I know this awesome Asian food place… If you’re into that, that is; I swear I wasn’t assuming anything…

Shimmer giggled and rolled her eyes.

Wait I’m part Asian? Why didn’t anyone tell me!? This changes so much!

Giggling some more at her reply to Moondancer, Shimmer sat down in front of the Vanity staring at her phone waiting for the response.

Yeah well, I didn’t want to like assume or anything. Didn’t want to come off as racist or anything because since it’s out there I thought it was pretty obvious you’re at least part Asian or something…

With a sigh, Shimmer shook her head and typed her reply.

You would be correct. I’m half and half. Anyways no worries, I’m not offended I actually love Asian cuisine.

Shimmer wasn’t being facetious either, during her time over in Japan she had grown a fondness for Asian food, her family used to go to expensive Asian eateries on a regular basis.

Good to know, and awesome. Would you mind swinging over at maybe… 11:30 or so? I’ll try and be ready by then and I’ll guide you to the place.

Taking a peek at the clock that didn’t give her a tremendous amount of prep time. She was hoping to squeeze in a nap before going anywhere after that all-nighter; however, she shrugged and decided she could find a way to make it all work.

Sounds good, I’ll be there at 11:30. I just need to take a small nap and then I’m going to bathe and get ready. See you then!

No sooner had she ended her text did her phone ring with Rarity’s name appearing on the screen accompanied by a photo that Shimmer had taken of her for her profile picture. She was making a rather exaggerated pouty face as she crossed her arms.

Answering, Shimmer found a yawn escaping her.

“Rarity? What’s up?”

The fashionista chuckled lightly at Shimmer’s exhaustion. “My, my someone’s tired.”

“I stayed up all night working on something,” Shimmer admitted.

“Really? You should get some rest then, darling. A girl needs her beauty sleep,” Rarity replied.

Shimmer giggled in agreement. “Yeah, I was just about to take a nap before heading out today. Say have you heard from Sunset today, yet?”

“Yes I have darling, she said she was busy so she couldn’t make it to a little get together that Pinkie is hosting tomorrow.”

Shimmer squinted in suspicion. Sunset seldom had plans that she didn’t inform her younger sister about; could she be covering up for something? She couldn’t possibly still be sick, could she? It had been so long that she should be well into the recovery period. Deciding not to make Rarity the middleman, she dropped the subject, however.

“I was actually calling regarding Pinkie’s get together so to speak…” Rarity continued.

“Oh?”

“Indeed, I was wondering if we would be graced with your presence?” Rarity’s voice came off almost as a pout, clearly ready to protest if Shimmer declined.

Twirling a strand of hair in her finger she sighed. “Yeah, I’ll make it. Is it alright if I possibly bring someone? I mean… I haven’t asked them yet, but if they say yes I’d like to introduce you guys to them…”

“Oh? Who might that be?” Rarity questioned.

“Just a new friend I made. Is it alright?”

Rarity gave a sound that made Shimmer believe she was likely rolling her eyes. “Darling, you don’t need permission to bring a friend. The more the merrier, I can’t wait to meet them!”

“Yeah, we’ll see. I’ll see you then okay? I really need to get this nap on or I’m going to pass out though. I think the energy from the coffee and everything else I drank to stay awake is finally wearing off…” Shimmer admitted.

“Darling, next time don’t stay up all night; it’s bad for your health,” her friend scolded.

“Good advice, I’ll have to remember it.” Shimmer joked before ending the call and quickly opening up her alarm app to set an alarm for the next hour. She’d be running on a little less than an hour of sleep for the day, but she figured she would make up for it by heading to bed early.

Yawning, she placed her phone down and wandered over to her bed, eager to crawl under the covers if not for just a little while. Moon was already fast asleep on the pillow next to her own. Climbing into bed she gave the canine a gentle caress before allowing her head to touch the pillow and meet slumber herself.

The hands of a skilled and seasoned seamstress wrapped a measuring tape around Twilight’s tiny waist, gathering her measurements. Rarity frowned as she realized how small Twilight’s waistline was, though she did note that Twilight’s other features lacked at times. She knew her to be a rather average chested girl and while she had a fairly nice rear, she seldom dressed to show it off. It was safe to say that Twilight had the fashion sense of an old woman rather than a teen currently living in the modern world.

For how up to date she was on gadgets and reading Rarity wondered how she didn’t find time to squeeze in a few searches on the latest fashion, after all, it was always a worthwhile endeavor to present one’s best self to the world; at least to Rarity anyways.

Twilight wiggled and fidgeted as Rarity attempted to get her measurements, struggling to hold still.

“Darling, if you want accurate measurements then you’ll need to hold still,” Rarity complained.

With a nod, Twilight inhaled and kept still as Rarity finished off the measurement. Twilight was definitely small framed, and Rarity made sure to take note of her size within her trusted measurement book. Inside the notebook was a quick sketch of Twilight with many lines pointing to different parts of her body with all of her measurement details filled out. She had a page for all of her friends along with notes about their design tastes.

“Are we done yet?” Twilight complained.

“This would have been a lot faster if you were willing to undress…” Rarity rolled her eyes.

Twilight looked down to the floor bashfully, unable to answer.

“I understand, you’re shy. It’s a nightmare getting Fluttershy out of her clothing for a fitting as well. I have to practically tear it off of her. I don’t see why not, there isn’t anything there that I haven’t seen before…” Rarity rolled her eyes once more remembering the last time she had to struggle with Fluttershy just to get her to remove a T-shirt.

Twilight just nodded in agreement, unsure of how to answer.

Rarity sensing her embarrassment decided to sway the conversation away from Twilight’s shyness regarding nudity.

“Anyway, darling… Looking at your measurements I’ll have to design something that flatters your legs and makes your chest pop a bit more…” Rarity leaned in and turned her head to get a look at Twilight’s profile from the side, “something that pushes your chest up a little will definitely do the trick…”

“Uh…” Twilight raised a finger in objection which Rarity instantly addressed.

“No worries, darling I’ll make sure its comfortable, dress to impress, but a little practicality goes a long way.”

Twilight chuckled as Rarity began to scratch in a few more notes into her notebook.

“When did you get so practical?” Twilight chuckled.

“Darling, I work with Applejack. You know how hard it is to get her to wear… Anything that isn’t plaid, flannel, denim or covered in sweat?” Rarity peaked at Twilight from behind her work glasses.

“Applejack is just not into that stuff I guess…” Twilight shrugged.

“A waste if you ask me. I would have killed for her chest. All those boobs and no desire to even show them of…” Rarity shook her head in disappointment, causing Twilight to giggle.

Deciding to change the subject from Applejack’s sizable breasts, Twilight decided to point out the obvious.

“You do know prom is not for months right? I don’t know why you’re designing these now…”

Rarity rolled her eyes in response before sitting down and crossing her legs as she scribbled some more notes. “I’m well aware darling, but you can never start planning these things too early. By the way, what’s the latest on the situation with Timber?”

Twilight frowned, she knew that subject would come up eventually. With a sigh, she took a seat across from Rarity and shook her head. “Over for good more than likely. It was mutual, it just was impossible to keep a relationship going when we lived so far apart and the spark that started it sort of faded fast. In actuality, we didn’t have a whole lot in common. The heart wants what the heart wants and all, right?”

Rarity nodded. “A shame, but I’m sure you’ll find someone else to take you.”

Twilight raised a brow. “What about you? Any suitors?”

Rarity shrugged and shook her head. “Well… no…”

Blinking, Twilight leaned in with interest. Rarity of all people didn’t even know if she was going to have a date to prom?

“You’re Rarity though? Perhaps the prettiest girl in school? There are boys lined up to ask you…” Twilight reminded.

Rarity rolled her eyes and blushed. “Flattery will get you nowhere, darling.”

“I mean it, how are you unsure of who will take you to the prom?” Twilight tilted her head.

“Well, truthfully yes you’re correct I am a very attractive lady, however, that means a lot of boys are shy about even approaching me… to top that off the situation is more… complicated than that…” she grimaced, clearly getting uneasy about this conversation.

“Is there someone, in particular, you’d prefer asked you?” Twilight spoke, ignoring the awkwardness and trudging onwards without much care.

Rarity tinged for a moment and then gritted her teeth, clearly shutting up entirely on the subject and dismissing it.

“Let’s just focus on you for now, shall we darling?”

Twilight could already tell that was all she was going to get out of the seamstress. Rarity clearly kept some secrets close to her chest.

“Very well… what did you want to talk about?” Twilight tilted her head.

“How about… Sunset?” Rarity’s face contorted to a smirk, and Twilight’s, in turn, grew a deep crimson blush.

“W-what about her?”

Rarity’s expression clearly showed she knew she had gotten the reaction she was hoping for. “Well… I noticed the two of you are awfully close…”

“We’re just friends, there’s nothing going on…” Twilight blushed and looked away.

“That’s not what Rainbow Dash tells me,” Rarity’s voice was almost in a sing-song.

“I sincerely regret telling her anything…” Twilight sighed.

Rarity giggled and nodded. “Rainbow is a bigger gossip than myself.”

“I’ll kill her later,” Twilight joked.

Shimmer had decided to take her Audi out for her planned lunch date today. Checking her watch she could see she was a few minutes early, but she was guessing that Moondancer wasn’t the kind of girl who took too long to get ready.

Parking on the side of the street she reached for her phone in her purse and quickly texted Moondancer to let her know that she had arrived.

Once she had finished and dropped her phone back into the bag she looked up to the mirror to adjust her outfit. She had chosen a long sleeve flowing top that draped over her bottom half but hugged her middle; the shirt was low cut enough though to show off her cleavage, however. She had chosen skull stud earrings today, and some dark leggings with ankle boots to complete the look.

Inspecting her makeup, she noted she had successfully drawn most of the attention to her eyes with her dark eyeliner and eyeshadow. She smiled at the girl with teal eyes staring back at her from the vanity mirror.

Closing it up she looked over at the apartment building to see her friend racing down the steps in some rather new looking converses. As she drew closer Shimmer could tell from the design that they weren’t actually new, but just seldom worn. They were models she knew had ceased production a few years ago, judging from her own collection.

Following her feet upwards, Shimmer saw a pair of tattered skinny jeans and scoop top that hung to one side, though more properly fitting than her sweater that Shimmer had come to know her for. Underneath Shimmer could tell she was wearing a pushup bra, obviously trying to come off as more feminine.

However, it was evident that the girl gave up on trying when she reached her hair which was the same mess that it always was.

Her pale freckled face grew pinkish in the cold air as she approached the car and let herself in, huffing into her cold hands to warm them up.

“You should really invest in some gloves…” Shimmer commented.

“I have some, I just totally forgot them and didn’t want to run back inside and keep you waiting any longer,” Moondancer admitted.

Shimmer rolled her eyes and sighed. “It’s fine. I only just got here.”

Moondancer nodded. “Want me to GPS us to where we have to go?”

Shimmer pulled her phone off of a mount on the dashboard and unlocked it, handing it to Moondancer without a word, providing a clear answer to that question. With a gentle nod, Moondancer delicately took the phone in her hand and gently tapped on the screen until she had set the coordinates for their desired location. She handed it off to Shimmer who placed it back into the mount and tapped the button to begin the navigation.

Revving up the car, Moondancer’s eyes were drawn to the key. “So… this is a really nice car… I’ve only really seen cars like this from afar, I’ve never really been in one before…”

Brushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear and placing her hands on the wheel, Shimmer nodded. “This one actually was mine. My parents bought it for me when I was a kid, it was intended to be my first car before they-“ she paused unsure of how to finish that sentence.

“Do you want to talk about something else?” Moondancer asked.

With a sigh, Shimmer shook her head and stopped the car, looking over to Moondancer with a serious expression. “Let’s just get this out of the way so it’s in the open. I don’t really like this subject that much but I’m sure you’re going to find out one way or another so it’s best we discuss it now…”

“O-okay…” Moondancer inched away gently, clearly concerned that the conversation could turn volatile at any moment.

Letting out another big sigh, Shimmer closed her eyes and thought. “My parents were killed. It was kind of a news story back in the day, but I sort of want to move on from it. I don’t really want to answer many questions about it, so I figured it was best to placate any curiosity you may have now.”

Moondancer blinked and shook her head. “I wasn’t going to ask you about that. Look, I know what it’s like. As I said before, my dad died so I know what it’s like to lose a parent, maybe not both but I do know what it’s like…”

Shimmer blinked and frowned. “Were you two close?”

Moondancer shook her head. “Sadly no; my dad was at work all the time so I never really got to see him a lot. There was still a big hole when he died though… what about you?”

Shimmer returned her attention to the road and started the car. Pulling out she finally answered the question with her eyes focused on the road. “Yeah… me and my parents were very close. We were together all the time. When they died it was… a difficult time for me. I lost a lot of connections with the rest of my family due to the money I inherited…”

Moondancer frowned and hesitantly reached her hand over and patted Shimmer’s leg. “Sorry to hear…”

Shimmer smiled and nodded. “It’s alright.”

With an array of different sushi dishes in front of them, Shimmer found the eatery to be quite to her liking. While nothing like the food she had had in her youth back in Japan, it was an earnest attempt at fine Asian dining and that was saying something as Shimmer was normally under the opinion that Asian food in the States was the equivalent of fast food.

“I’m glad I went with the number 8,” Moondancer commented with her mouth full.

Shimmer giggled and offered her a napkin to wipe a spot on her lower lip.

Taking it and dabbing the spot, a small blush of embarrassment came to Moondancer’s face as she realized that Shimmer more than likely took notice of her poor table manners.

“S-sorry…” Moondancer managed to squeak out.

“It’s quite alright,” Shimmer responded.

Moondancer swallowed and composed herself as she smiled at her new friend, glad that she was far easier going than most girls with her kind of money and class.

“So, I’ve been meaning to ask; you said it was a long story but how did you and your sister end up with the same name?” Moondancer asked.

Shimmer opened her mouth ready to rehearse the lie she had prepared about how Sunset was adopted by another family when she was given away at birth and coincidentally was given the same name, but the moment she saw Moondancer’s purple eyes the desire to even attempt to put on her convincing face and make this story sound believable completely faded. The thought of having to lie to her new friend rubbed her wrong, and before she knew it, the truth was pulled out of her.

“Hey… can you keep a secret?”

Interest in the conversation rose and Moondancer placed her hands on the table and leaned in to hear better.

“Well, I have a flawless track record of keeping them; full disclosure though I’ve never had any secrets shared with me due to not having any friends…” She admitted sheepishly. It was likely true, however.

Shimmer rolled her eyes and took a deep inhale followed by her explanation. “Okay, so I am not exactly expecting you to believe me, first of all…”

Moondancer blinked and leaned in closer. “Go on.”

“My sister is… not normal.” Shimmer bit her lip, unsure of which way to take this or how Moondancer would react.

“Like… not normal as in… she used to be your brother or something?” Moondancer tilted her head.

A snicker escaped Shimmer but the composed herself. “No, not like that… Weirder…”

“Weirder how?”

“My sister… is technically an alien,” Shimmer admitted.

She paused and looked directly at Moondancer to get a read on her reaction. Moondancer’s face predictably was one of confusion.

“Like an illegal alien?”

“No, well… I guess at one point, but I mean like… an alien-like… not human,” Shimmer admitted.

“Like… from the movie the book, ‘Who Goes There?’” Moondancer asked.

Shimmer rubbed her neck, unsure of how to answer that. “Well… the part about her being an alien yes, but not the whole… replicating people and whatnot…”

“Go on…” Moondancer’s brow rose as she listened, slurping some noodles as she watched Shimmer tell her story.

With an exhale Shimmer began, “she came from an alternate universe where she is a magic unicorn and wow I sound completely crazy don’t I?”

Moondancer nodded. “Yeah it sounds ridiculous, but I’m trying to figure out if this is some stupid joke or something… if it is… I don’t see the point in continuing when it’s clear that I am not buying it…”

Shimmer nodded and leaned back in her seat, realizing the futility of the situation. “Well, it’s not a joke. I know it all sounds super mega insane, but it’s the truth. She can do magic and stuff, I don’t really fully understand it myself either. I’ve sort of been researching it in my spare time to make sense of it, but there’s still a ton that I don’t even get…”

Moondancer finished slurping down the noodles in her mouth and placed her chopsticks down on the table. Picking up a napkin she gently patted her lips before speaking. “Let me make sure I got this right… your sister… is actually you or something from an alternate universe and in that universe, she’s like a magical unicorn thing?”

Shimmer nodded. “It sounds like total bullshit doesn’t it?”

With a nod, Moondancer grew a smirk. “I don’t suppose you could provide any proof?”

Shimmer bit her lip but nodded again. “Yeah, I could… but can it wait? All my research is back at my lab. I promise I’ll prove it to you at some point, but you can’t utter a word of this to anyone.”

Moondancer smiled and nodded. “Totally, besides who would believe me anyway?”

“True, it took quite a while for me to believe it…” Shimmer giggled.

Returning to Moondancer’s apartment after their get together, Shimmer parked the car and offered to walk inside with her friend. Staying on her right side, she let her eyes wander getting a good look at the building as they ascended to Moondancer’s floor. Like Moondancer’s own apartment, the rest of the building was relatively unimpressive, as Shimmer expected. Many of the walls looked as though they could do with a fresh coat of paint, and the rugs in the halls definitely looked as though they could use both a good vacuuming and perhaps even a deep clean.

Reaching the apartment, Moondancer retrieved a key from her pocket and unlocked the door. Shimmer took note of how Moondancer stored things in her pockets like a guy rather than opt for a purse. Then again with how many books she liked to bring with her to many places, a backpack or a messenger bag was better suited for such a girl.

Letting them in, the friendly face of her mother greeted them as the older woman finished buttoning up a blouse she had clearly just put on. “Welcome home, Moondancer.”

Her eyes darted over to Shimmer with a smile as she nodded. “And to you as well, Shimmer. It’s nice to see you again.”

“Hey mom, just got back from that Asian cuisine place,” Moondancer said as she reached down and struggled to remove her boots.

Her mother nodded and adjusted a wristwatch.

“How is that place anyway?”

“It was pretty good, though I imagine for Shimmer it wasn’t amazing considering she spent time in Japan eating the real deal,” Moondancer spoke as she finally managed to get her boots off and set them aside.

Shimmer blinked as Moondancer’s mother looked her way. “Really now? That’s pretty interesting. Are you of Japanese descent, Shimmer?”

Brushing a stray hair back Shimmer nodded. “Yes, my mother was part Japanese, my father was European though. He came to America with his father when he was just a boy.”

“How’d they meet?” Moondancer joined the conversation.

“She was his high school sweetheart. She came originally as an exchange student and he mustered up the courage to ask her to the prom. After that… she decided to stay in America and the rest is history,” Shimmer explained, her heart fluttering slightly as she remembered that story, it was always one of her favorites by her mother.

“I would love to meet them sometime.” Moondancer’s mother smiled.

A frown appeared on both Moondancer and Shimmer’s faces.

“Unfortunately they died. It’s just me now.” Shimmer shrugged.

“I’m sorry to hear; well you’re always welcome here!” The woman exclaimed, quickly fixing the dampened mood.

Shimmer nodded.

“Aren’t you going to be late, mom?” Moondancer asked.

The woman blinked and checked her watch. “Oh shoot! You’re right! Alright, gotta run! Love you, kiddo!” She said as she bolted for the door.

“Bye, mom.” Moondancer waved as her mother exited the building.

Shimmer stood awkwardly unsure if she should remove her boots or not. Her mind couldn’t tell her if it was a good idea to stay longer or not.

“Wanna hang out for a bit before you take off?” Moondancer asked.

Shimmer was thankful that the girl answered the question for her. She nodded and followed the girl to her bedroom.

Entering, the place was just as messy as she had remembered it from the other day. There was a good chance though that Moondancer didn’t get the chance to clean any time recently. The girl spent a lot of her time studying and doing schoolwork to maintain her requirements to stay on scholarship.

Moondancer sat down on her bed and let her body fall flat with a loud sigh of content. “I ate way too much…” she mumbled.

Shimmer carefully approached and took a seat next to the girl and giggled. “You eat like a guy, you know that?”

“I’ve been told that before; hell I’ve been told I should have been born a guy in general,” Moondancer responded.

Chuckles escaped Shimmer. “It might suit you better.”

“I wouldn’t have to deal with uncomfortable bras or periods that make you pray for the sweet release of death anymore that’s for sure.” Moondancer fantasized about such a world where she was exempt from such things. Many times had she thought about how boys simply had it easier.

“I like you how you are regardless,” Shimmer said.

Moondancer sat up and smirked before nudging Shimmer’s shoulder. “What’re you buttering me up for? You’re the one with money, there’s nothing you could kiss ass to get from me that you can’t get yourself.”

“That’s not entirely true,” Shimmer corrected.

“Oh? What could you possibly try to get out of me?” Moondancer raised a brow.

“This.” Shimmer turned to the taller lanky girl and placed a hand on Moondancer’s small chest. Reaching forward with her other hand, she gripped Moondancer’s shirt and pulled her closer to herself.

The heat from Shimmer’s body magnified the heat from Moondancer’s own as she felt her cheeks light up and her entire body shot a tingling feeling through it. Moondancer’s eyes locked onto the powerful gaze of Shimmer and she found herself frozen in place, unable to move or respond. She allowed herself to go limp and let Shimmer do as she pleased.

Closing the distance between the two, Shimmer’s breath could be felt on Moondancer’s lips as she brought the two’s faces dangerously close.

Moondancer observed as Shimmer’s eyes closed and her lips puckered ever so slightly. Time seemed to move in slow motion and every sense of Moondancer’s was heightened. So much so that she could actually feel beads of sweat running down the back of her neck as she saw Shimmer lean in with her inviting lips.

It was fortunate that Shimmer was the one leading, as Moondancer could only find herself in a position of obedience and not of dominance at that moment.

The nerdy girl allowed her own eyes to close and her head to turn slightly as their lips locked. She could actually taste the mango flavored chapstick that Shimmer had put on earlier. A tingle shot down Moondancer’s spine as she allowed herself to relax and enjoy what was transpiring before her.

Shimmer gripped the girl’s shirt tighter, causing Moondancer to finally come back to reality and her arms flew around Shimmer and wrapped her up, bringing her closer. A single hand trailed its way up Shimmer’s back and locked its fingers into her long hair, holding her as the two kissed.

It didn’t take long before Shimmer recognized that Moondancer was inexperienced. Shimmer would have to show her how to properly kiss a lady.

Opening her mouth slightly and retaking control, Shimmer snaked her short tongue into Moondancer’s mouth causing the girl to release a gentle moan that was almost too adorable for Shimmer not to giggle, however, she miraculously managed to withhold such giggles.

Their tongue danced together before Shimmer nipped Moondancer’s lower lip with passion.

Finally breaking the kiss slowly, a gentle trail of saliva linked the two for a moment as Moondancer leaned forward slightly not wanting the kiss to end, but ultimately allowing Shimmer to call the shots.

Shimmer touched her forehead to Moondancer’s and silently listened to Moondancer’s heavier breathing.

With a smile, Shimmer nearly whispered, “along with a few other things…”

“Yeah… I suppose… you couldn’t do that yourself…” Moondancer managed to get out, her brain not functioning at full capacity after what had just transpired.

With a giggle, Shimmer locked eyes with the girl.

“I like you, Moondancer,” she stated plainly.

“I gathered that much…” Moondancer smiled in reply.

“Oh good, I was hoping I was laying it on thick enough,” Shimmer joked.

“But…” Moondancer partially averted her gaze.

“But?”

She sighed. “You’re like… this almost supermodel level girl with all the money in the world… I’m just…well… I’m different…”

Shimmer moved her head slightly to force Moondancer to meet her eyes again. Once she had the girl’s stare back she smirked.

“I don’t care about that. You don’t need to get me anything; you don’t need to have money. On top of that… I think you’re very sexy;” Shimmer explained.

A blush grew on Moondancer. “R-really?”

“I was checking you out every chance I could get today,” Shimmer admitted.

Moondancer found a laugh leave her throat at the thought. She wasn’t used to being someone whom people looked at, she was more used to being the girl no one gave a second glance. To even imagine someone as beautiful as Shimmer giving her their gaze was something she didn’t even dream of.

“Well… does this mean… I should call you tomorrow?” Moondancer asked.

Shimmer nodded and came to a stand.

“Definitely, in fact, I’ll be expecting it.”

Moondancer nodded as she was finally recovering from the daze that the kiss had left her in.

Shimmer winked and looked at her watch. “I really should get going though. I think that’s enough excitement for one night, don’t you?”

Moondancer wanted to say no, she wanted to ask for more, but the logical part of her brain took over and made her say the opposite. “Y-yeah.”

With a wink, Shimmer as herself out, causing Moondancer to watch her as she left, her eyes locked onto the girl’s shapely rear that was complimented so well by her outfit. Her fingers reached up to touch her lips. The tingling sensation was still quite apparent upon her lips and her whole body still was slightly warm.

She had never had any experience with these kinds of things before, but she knew that a kiss like that wasn’t just for fun.

Moondancer sighed with content as she fell back onto her bed smiling; her first kiss, and with such a pretty girl at that. For that brief moment, she felt invincible, that she could conquer any obstacle and overcome any challenge.

Returning to the waking world, Sunset grumbled as she felt her head pound nearly ready to explode. The pain and agony she had felt that morning which she hoped would lessen had only intensified. Her head throbbing was almost unbearable.

Her arms were weak, but she managed to force the comforter off of her body only to feel a rush of cold air wrap around her making her shiver. Moving a leg over the edge of her bed and setting it on the floor she tried to take a stand only to fall to her knees.

The eyes in her head failed to create any kind of images as she peered around the room and instead was given only vague blobs resembling what items were supposed to be.

Sunset attempted to compose herself so she could make her way to the bathroom and retrieve the painkillers she had stashed in the medicine cabinet. That meant she would need to bring herself to a full stand.

Reaching around aimlessly she managed to find the footboard of the bed and grip onto it with a pathetically weak grip. With a deep inhale she pulled herself to a wobbly stand and quickly gripped the footboard with her other hand as well. Exhaling she could already feel dizziness overtake her.

Taking a single step she almost collapsed to the floor again but sustained herself.

Grabbing her phone from her nearby bedside she took another step. After enough heavy breathing and fighting off nausea, she managed to get to the doorframe where she propped herself up against it. Another inhale and exhale she managed to force another few steps out of her weak legs and made it all the way to the bathroom through sheer willpower.

She had to use the sink to hold herself up, but with a free hand she flipped open the medicine cabinet and rooted around aimlessly until she could feel a bottle that felt like the correct container. Locating it quickly she squinted to try and get her vision to focus. It was no use however as her eyes refused to reveal the label of the container to her.Deciding it didn’t much matter, she lifted her other hand from the sink and the moment she did her legs finally gave out.

Going down, Sunset felt the world around her slow down. A few seconds of her body falling felt like a solid twenty minutes before she hit the hard floor, her phone flying out of her pocket.

Her breathing was labored and painful. Every breath sent a sharp pain in her chest.

Sunset looked ahead of herself on the floor to see where her phone had gotten off to. It sat there in front of her on the floor.

Reaching she managed to get it in her hand. She had to bring it as close to her face as possible to actually read what was on the screen, but she could tell there was a large crack in the old Samsung phone from dropping it.

With the little energy she did have, Sunset tapped away at the screen as quickly as she could bringing up Shimmer’s contact card. Sunset typed the only message she could manage to get out and hit send before letting her hand fall flat on the floor and closed her eyes.

Help me.

This chapter caused me great stress a few weeks back. I was stuck on writer's block for a while and this chapter took around two weeks to actually finish. The problem was though that as I was nearing the end of 11 pages of text the file got corrupted and I lost all my progress. The only scene that survived was the middle scene where Shimmer and Moondancer kiss. So this is not the original version of this chapter, that was lost forever.

Behind the Scenes: one of my original ideas was to have Moondancer actually reject Shimmer at first because she didn't know if she was gay or not. I ultimately decided it was kind of a crap idea and felt the two hit it off enough to where their romance felt natural by this point.