“I’ve been having a lot of dreams lately.”

The smell of coffee and baked goods filled the air as it always did in Cuppa’s. Sunset took a deep breath, the familiar, calming odors doing wonders for her nerves as she sipped at her black coffee and stared out the window and into the streets of the Commons. Watching the people go to and fro was one of her favorite things to do; seeing the little motes of life wander about on their daily business reminded her of how important the world was to more than just her. It was humbling… something that had taken Sunset a long time to learn to appreciate.

“What kind of dreams?” her companion asked curiously, sipping at her own coffee drink which was far creamier and sweeter than Sunset could stomach. “Bad ones?”

“The worst,” Sunset replied, furrowing her brow. “It’s like watching my worst fear play out every single night.”

“I’m going to take a shot in the dark and say… Gilda?”

Sunset chuckled wanly. “It must be pretty bad if even you can read me, Sparkle.”

Princess Twilight gave her friend an encouraging smile. “Well, you also aren’t afraid of much… but something happening to Gilda? I can imagine it’s a lot like if something happened to my BBBFF, you know? Where is she, by the way?”

“Working,” Sunset replied, still looking out at the street and realising with a slight pang of dark amusement that she was looking the general direction of the Ponyville Auto Garage. “I practically had to kick her out of the house, figuratively speaking, to get her to go, too… ever since that phone call a few nights back she’s been paranoid.”

The Princess nodded gravely. “Her foster father seems like exactly the type of villain to be wary of, especially since…”

“He knows magic,” Sunset filled in, and Twilight Sparkle gave another sharp nod.

“I can’t account for that either,” Twilight said quietly. “From what you’ve told me it sounds like he’s had access to it for some time, at least enough to be comfortable and practiced with it.” Twilight scratched her head in confusion for a few moments and grumbled wordlessly. “That doesn’t make any sense though, that kind of ease would take years to acquire but you only brought magic into this world last year.”

“It wasn’t the first time the portal was opened though,” Sunset pointed out. “Not counting me coming through five or so years back, the Sirens were banished here thousands of years ago, and honestly there’s no telling what else might’ve been dumped here, too.”

Princess Twilight sighed and took another sip of her drink, nodding along with Sunset’s breakdown of the events.

“Furthermore,” Twilight added. “We still never answered the real question… the one I should have thought to ask back when I first learned about the portal.”

“What do you mean? Sunset asked, lowering her coffee and meeting Twilight’s eyes as the purple princess looked up at her. “What question haven’t we asked?”

“Why here?” Twilight said softly. “Why here?”

“I don’t follow,” Sunset replied, setting her coffee on the table and waiting for Twilight to elaborate.

Twilight sighed. “I mean, why the human world?”

Sunset’s eyes widened slightly as she caught on to Twilight’s train of thought. It hadn’t occurred to her to ask the question either, but now that Twilight had said it Sunset felt like an idiot for not having realised it before.

“Of all the places in all the multiverse,” Twilight muttered. “Why did the portal connect here?”

“Well… there’s always random chance,” Sunset replied weakly, but the answer sounded hollow even to her. “But, I guess that’s pretty unlikely.”

“Agreed,” Twilight said in a grim voice. “I’ll do some research when I get back to Equestria, worse comes to worst I can always just ask Princess Celestia and see if she remembers anything.”

“Having a millennia-old ruler is pretty helpful,” Sunset agreed with a chuckle. “How, uhm… how is she?”

“Good,” Twilight replied. “She asks after you often, I’ve shared some of our correspondence, I hope that’s okay…”

“It’s fine,” Sunset insisted with a smile. “I want to come see her sometime soon, but there’s just… so much going on right now, you know?”

“I know,” Princess Twilight said softly. “Going back to your dreams then…”

“They’re awful,” Sunset said, her face falling as she took another sip of coffee. “And I only recently started remembering the finer details… it’s like, they’re getting more and more real, you know? Before I could barely remember them but now… Twilight, I haven’t slept in almost twenty four hours…”

“Sunset… that’s…” Twilight began, before trailing off.

Sunset sighed, grimacing as she took another swig of coffee. “When they started, right around Christmas, I couldn’t even really remember what they were about, but now I can’t get them out of my head.”

“Tell me about them,” Twilight said, reaching out to take Sunset’s hand and give it a comforting squeeze. “I’ll listen.”

Sunset took a deep breath and nodded. “The dreams differ a lot in the particulars but… they always start with a storm, a lightning storm, specifically.” It was painful to go back to those memories, but Sunset grit her teeth and cast her mind back all the same. “I’m flying, but… no, I’m fleeing, through the air I mean… I’m being chased by something that’s calling out Gilda’s name and… Written’s Quill, Twilight, the voice is so angry…”

“Are you sure it’s you the voice is chasing?” Twilight asked and Sunset sighed.

“I realised it the night the call came in,” Sunset said after a moment, “it’s not me, I think I’m seeing through Gilda’s eyes.”

“That’s worrying,” Twilight said grimly.

“You’re telling me,” Sunset agreed with a grimace. “Whatever is chasing Gilda hates her… seriously hates her, I mean, and… sometimes I dream that the thing catches her and then… I don’t know, there’s a crash of lightning and then I wake up.”

“That could be a lot of things,” Twilight said uneasily.

Sunset gave a hollow smile. “When you’re falling in your dream and you wake as you hit the ground, there’s only one thing that could have happened there, I’m pretty sure.”

The two girls were silent for several minutes as they sipped their coffee, watching the cold winds of winter’s tail end blow through the streets of Canterlot and the Commons as Princess Twilight considered the situation.

It had been shortly after the phone call from Tempest that Sunset had written to the Princess and asked her to cross over so that they could talk in person. Twilight had done so as quickly as possible, greatly concerned by the presence of Equestrian magic in the hands of someone that Sunset had described as a career criminal: something that meant a great deal more in the Human world than it did in Equestria.

The fact was that Equestria had benefited from over a thousand years of largely peaceful, stable, and benevolent rule, thanks to Princess Celestia. Her immortality, power, and great wisdom earned her the respect of the leaders of others nations, meaning even when things were at their worst it didn’t necessarily mean a diplomatic solution was off the table. Princess Celestia had done a great deal to ensure that Equestria had a cultural aversion to crime as a concept and social programs came at the issue from the direction of ‘if one eliminates the need to commit crime, then there will be less crime’.

Princess Celestia had ensured that Twilight had a thorough grounding in criminal theory during her lessons; crime is committed most often in times of desperation, therefore logic would indicate that eliminating those desperate situations would largely eliminate crime itself. That didn’t mean that there weren’t organized criminals and the like; Manehattan and Stalliongrad were infamous for them, but the regular petty crime and constant violence of the human world was simply non-existent in Equestria, something that Twilight blamed mostly on the human race’s total lack of organization. That did mean, however, that human criminals ended up being a singularly vicious breed of outlaw.

The idea of having one as dangerous as this ‘Storm King’ possessing even minor Equestrian magic was a serious cause for alarm.

That said; Sunset’s dreams were almost more alarming.

“Sunset, are you familiar with Oneiromancy?” Twilight asked as she set her nearly empty cup down.

“I know of it, but…” Sunset chuckled grimly, “divination was always my worst subject, you know? Go ahead, make a joke about my lack of foresight.”

Twilight gave a quiet laugh, but shook her head. “It’s alright, Divining the future is a talent that very few have, I’m pretty bad at it too and my special talent is magic itself.”

“Right, I’m much more comfortable with brute force spells, and that… is not Divination,” Sunset agreed. “So… oneiromancy… divination by dreaming?”

“Mhm,” Twilight answered, draining the last her coffee and grimacing slightly at the dregs. “It’s one of the few forms of magic that can’t be taught. Anyone can learn astromancy or cartomancy, even catoptromancy is teachable, but dreamers? Those are… rare.”

“Why?” Sunset asked, sipping her drink. “I never looked into it very closely.”

“Because it’s dangerous,” Twilight said quietly. “Being that close to the dreaming world, anyone with powerful magic has a chance to be a dreamer, but that realm is… maddening. For reference, King Sombra is a singularly powerful dreamer.”

“Oof,” Sunset grunted, wincing slightly at the comparison.

“Yeah… now the dream realm has a lot of names, but it’s always the same place,” Twilight continued. “As far as my studies suggest, there are two types of dreamers; present and non-present.”

“Meaning?” Sunset asked, raising an eyebrow.

Twilight sighed, and pinched the bridge of her nose. “I’ll need to talk to Fluttershy, my Fluttershy, about this later, she… well, I’ll tell you that story later… point is, continuing the reference, Sombra is a ‘present’ dreamer, meaning he can enter the dream realm and, from there, influence the minds of sleepers; inducing nightmares, madness, and worse.”

Sunset’s eyes widened at that.

“Alternatively,” Twilight continued, “there are non-present dreamers, they’re commonly thought of like seers or oracles.”

“They dream of future events,” Sunset said, not a question but a statement, and Twilight nodded carefully.

“Not just future events,” Twilight responded. “Time and space are no obstacles, though, so they might see events in the far future, the distant past, or five minutes ago, or five minutes later…” Princess Twilight sighed as she leaned back in her chair, fiddling with her empty cup. “The only other mortal ‘non-present’ dreamer I know of is in an asylum in Canterlot.”

“That’s encouraging… and immortal?” Sunset asked, not liking her odds.

“Princess Luna, obviously,” Twilight replied with a dry smile. “She’s both, actually, making her the only known instance of a pony being capable of both present and non-present dreaming, but then, she’s an alicorn so she gets to cheat, I guess.”

“So I’m going crazy?” Sunset asked weakly, her grip tightening on her cup.

Twilight bit her lip, looking unsure for several moments as she considered her answer. “I… no, I don’t think so… dreaming is still magic, you know.”

“And this world’s magic is still weak,” Sunset said, feeling a creeping relief wash over her. “I never thought I’d be grateful for that.”

“But if you’re suddenly have flashes of dreams then that might be changing,” Princess Twilight warned.

Sunset shook her head. “How, though? That would require someone dragging in huge amounts of power from somewhere and then casting it out to be absorbed by the ambient field.”

Princess Twilight nodded, her mind working over the issue. “You’re right… and it’s recent, very recent, right?” Sunset nodded at that and Twilight frowned. “Alright, so, let’s rule out a magus manually dredging magic up and casting spells, what does that leave us with?”

“A natural source,” Sunset said, ticking one finger up, “like a breached leyline, or something.”

“But that would be obvious,” Twilight replied, waving a hand. “Leylines are entirely uncontrolled, like a geyser without an end. Have your dreams been regular?”

“No,” Sunset answered, sagging slightly. “I dreamt about the storm for the first time on Christmas Eve… and I barely remembered anything about it afterwards. Then I dreamt again on Christmas morning, but after that…” Sunset furrowed her brow as she tried to remember the dates and times, and resolving to start a dream journal after this conversation. “It was over a week until the next time. I think, and then another couple of weeks passed and I dreamt it clearer than ever… that was right before we got the call.”

“So not a natural Source,” Princess Twilight said quietly. “Not unless someone is actively using it, turning it on and off, and I doubt there’s anyone on this world with the knowledge, power, and will to do something like that.”

“Possible, though,” Sunset countered. “We’ll keep it on the backburner, but… I admit it is pretty unlikely.”

“Next?”

Narrowing her eyes, Sunset winced internally as she thought back to the Fall Formal. Letting out a sigh, Sunset looked back up at Twilight and ticked up another finger.

“An artifact,” Sunset said finally, “A powerful one.”

“Theoretically, possible,” Twilight replied, then shook her head a moment later, “No… probable, I’d say; an artifact with enough power packed into it could artificially encourage the strengthening of the ambient magical field in Canterlot.”

“Yeah, I mean, we should know, right?” Sunset said with a cocked grin, and Princess Twilight chuckled quietly. “And most artifacts don’t require much know-how to use them.”

“I don’t like this, but I can’t deny the notion,” Twilight agreed grudgingly. “The thought of more Equestrian artifacts drifting around this world doesn't sit well with me. I’ll do some digging and see if Starswirl left behind any notes regarding any dangerous objects he might have dumped here… we really do owe this world an apology, don’t we?”

“I can’t say I’m not partially responsible, though,” Sunset said in a soft voice. “I mean, seriously, any Equestrian artifact would probably just be a dud if I hadn’t jumpstarted this world’s field.”

Twilight reached and took Sunset’s hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “It’s still just a theory, Sunset,” she urged, “and even if it’s proven true, you couldn’t have known… plus, chances are if Starswirl did dump a dark artifact here, it probably claimed some lives before its internal reservoir dried up… I hate to think of it but my ‘hero’ might be a lot less heroic than I thought.”

“Starswirl sought to protect Equestria, above all,” Sunset said, squeezing Twilight’s hand back. “Believe me, I know what it’s like to be stuck between a bad choice and a worse one… I guess I just empathize.”

“It just feels like he gave up and made the darkness he was fighting someone else’s problem instead of solving it,” Twilight grumbled in irritation.

Sunset just smiled at that, taking Twilight’s hand in both of hers.

“That’s why you’re an alicorn and he’s not, though,” Sunset said insistently. “Think about it… you surpassed him a long time ago, Twi, your status as an alicorn is proof of that.”

Twilight didn’t respond, rather, she just looked down at her empty cup thoughtfully. Outside, the sounds of traffic and daily life spilled over; a car honk here and there, the soft clamor of people talking as they went about their business. Sunset gave Twilight’s hand a reassuring squeeze as she turned away to watch out the window, a part of her knowing that she was looking for a familiar flash of white hair, a glimpse of a brown jacket, or glint of a golden eye.

It had only been a few hours since Gilda had gone to work and Sunset already missed her so much it was like there was a hole in her heart. That was a regular occurrence too, anytime Gilda was gone Sunset had to find something to distract herself or the loneliness would start eating at her gut.

‘That’s definitely not healthy,’ Sunset mused to herself, but only idly. For now she was fine with it. For now… ‘My life has been miserable enough, it owes me this little bit of weakness.’

Sunset suppressed a chuckle as she wondered if it was possible to be mentally unhealthy in a healthy manner. Maybe… maybe just in the sense of not trying to rush things. Going too quickly was what got her into most of her problems in life, after all.

“What does it mean to surpass someone, I wonder?” Twilight mused quietly, drawing Sunset out of her mental wanderings.

Sunset shrugged. “Wouldn’t know,” she said with an arid smile, “I don’t think I’ll be surpassing anyone anytime soon, savvy?”

“I’m not sure how true that is,” Twilight muttered quietly, low enough to escape Sunset’s ears.

“What was that?”

Twilight just shook her head, laughing softly to herself. “Nothing, so if we’re assuming that one or more artifacts are the cause of your dreaming… what does that have to do with Gilda’s sister?”

“That’s where it all falls apart,” Sunset grumbled, hanging her head. “I have no clue…”

“Give it time,” Twilight said with a smile. “We’ll figure it out.”

“Every minute of time we give it is another minute that Storm has time to plot or worse,” Sunset said grimly, scowling as she glanced out the window again. “Every single second is… dangerous.”

Twilight frowned but didn’t deny it. Sunset wasn’t necessarily wrong about that, and it irked her that there was nothing she could do about it. For certain, if she knew for a fact that somepony like Chrysalis were out there plotting then Twilight knew she’d be the first in line to track them down, begrudging every second not spent on the hunt. Some ponies, and people, were just too dangerous to be left to their own devices.

At the same time though…

“Either way, there’s nothing we can do at this exact moment,” Twilight said, finally, giving Sunset’s hand another gentle squeeze. “I have a different question for you now though, not one I think you have an answer to but definitely… something to think on.”

“I’ll take any distraction I can at this point,” Sunset said with a grim smile. “Some days a girl just can’t get rid of a bomb, y’know?”

“Huh?” Twilight raised in eyebrow in confusion.

“Sorry, Gilda’s been making me watch old t.v. shows, go on,” Sunset said with a chuckle.

“Okay, well,” Twilight took a breath and looked pensive for a moment before nodding to herself. “You’ve managed to unite the Elements of Harmony on this world once more, which I never congratulated you for properly by the way so…”

Sunset waved her hand dismissively. “Don’t look at me, you and I both know the Elements want to find their bearers, I just sort of… nudged things along.”

“Don’t downplay your role,” Twilight said sternly. “You and I also both know… you better than most… that this is not Equestria, people here just… don’t seem to listen to their better sense most of time, there’s so much selfishness and fear that it’s suffocating sometimes.”

“Some people stand out though,” Sunset said softly. “Some of them… I think the fact that this world is so hard to find the goodness in makes those people who have it shine all the brighter.”

“Like Gilda?” Twilight said with a small teasing smile on her face.

Sunset blushed softly, but nodded. “Like Gilda,” she agreed, “and Vinyl, and Octavia, and Penny, and even the Sirens.”

“Adagio Dazzle: Element of Honesty,” Twilight muttered in disbelief. “I would never have imagined.”

“Weird, right?” Sunset asked with a laugh. “So what was your question?”

“Right, I got a little distracted,” Twilight said, taking a breath and settling back in her chair. “So we both know that the Elements here aren’t the Elements in Equestria, right? They’re a separate pair of powers since my friends still retain their connections.”

“Fair point,” Sunset conceded. “I hadn’t really given it much thought but yeah, I guess they’d have to be, huh?”

“Right,” Twilight said, “so they’re separate but the ancillary Elements; Generosity, Honesty, Laughter, Kindness, and Loyalty, are the same in both worlds.”

“They’re pretty generic attributes, Twi,” Sunset pointed out with a smile. “I can’t say I’m surprised.”

Twilight nodded in agreement. “Of course, neither am I, that wasn’t my point.”

“Okay…” Sunset replied, raising an eyebrow.

“What is specific, though, is the catalytic Element,” Twilight said firmly, “my Element… and yours.”

“The Element of Magic,” Sunset said in agreement, but Twilight just shook her head.

Then a light lit behind Sunset’s eyes, the idea that Twilight had been digging at suddenly reared up like a ten ton hippo in the redhead’s brain as she realised what her friend was suggesting. No… what her friend had realised and what had gone completely over Sunset’s head until this very moment. Sunset’s face fell as she tried to grapple with the realisation she had just had.

“I’m… not the Element of Magic,” Sunset said in a small whisper.

‘Obviously’, Sunset thought bitterly. ‘I’ve felt the Element of Magic before, I’ve felt its power.’

Twilight shook her head. “I don’t think this world has an Element of Magic, Sunny, it’s just… not magical.”

“Then…” Sunset felt her breath coming in short, sharp bursts as panic and unsurety stabbed through her heart.

Was she even a part of the Elements? Was everything she had been working towards based on a false premise and she was just some kind of glorified messenger, destined to find but never be a part of? Gilda was a part of the whole but if Sunset wasn’t then what did that mean? Did that mean they weren’t-

Twilight stood quickly, sidling around the table to wrap her arms around Sunset’s shoulders and pulled her into a hug.

“You are the catalyst Element, Sunset,” Twilight insisted, feeling a pang of worry in her heart. “But… if I’m right, then the sparking Element of this world isn’t magic.”

“Of course,” Sunset muttered. “I’ve said it so many times… this is a null-magic rock of a world.”

“But you are part of the Elements,” Twilight repeated, “trust me, like calls to like, I can tell, I can feel the Element of Magic reacting to you.”

“Are you sure it’s not just trying to get away from me after what I pulled last time?” Sunset asked bitterly, scowling down at the table.

Twilight sighed. “No, I promise that’s not it, really.”

A soft ding from Sunset’s pocket alerted her to a message, distracting the her from the momentary panic that was gripping her heart. Pulling her phone free she felt a smile trace across her lips as she saw Gilda’s name on the contact.

Gilda: //where u at?//

Tapping the message, Sunset opened up the reply screen and typed out her answer. //Cuppas with Twilight, everything okay?//

Gilda: //yeah//

Short and perfunctory, like most of Gilda’s texts. Sunset shook her head as she stowed her phone away. Gilda’s fear and paranoia over her foster father’s sudden freedom had her constantly looking over her shoulder and double-checking where Sunset was every other hour.

Ding. Sunset retrieved her phone again and glanced down.

Gilda: //I love you//

Sunset felt her heart skip, even after months those words still did that to her. //I love you too.//

“Everything alright?” Twilight asked from beside Sunset.

Nodding, Sunset set her phone down on the table and took a deep breath. Panicking wouldn’t do anyone any good, and Twilight was right, she was the catalyst Element, she knew it in her bones the same way her old friends knew that their Elements had left them. There was a glow inside her, a voice that whispered softly, almost unheard. Sunset could feel the presence of the Element, but if it wasn’t magic…

“What’s the catalyst for this world’s Elements, then?” Sunset muttered.

Twilight just shook her head as she walked back around to her chair and settled back into it. “I couldn’t say,” she replied wanly. “I wish I knew, it would be fascinating to study how another world’s guiding Elements are bound together, but you and I know full well that the magic of this world doesn’t correspond to the rules of our world perfectly.”

“No, I know,” Sunset grumbled. “It’s just one more thing to be unsure about.”

“Yeah… but don’t worry too much,” Twilight said, smiling encouragingly. “You don’t need to do this alone, you’ve got friends, you’ve got me… you’ve got Gilda.”

Sunset felt a flicker of warmth erupt in her heart and she smiled, nodding to Twilight.

“I feel like Gilda is the one who’s going to need help, though,” Sunset said wryly. “You should see her… she’s, uhm, kind of a mess lately, speaking of which…”

“Hm?” Twilight cocked her head to the side as Sunset lifted her phone to check the time.

Looking up, Sunset waved down the younger woman at the register. “Cuppa! Can I get a large triple shot mocha and a cheese danish?”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “I thought you took your coffee black.”

“I do,” Sunset said with a tired grin.

Fortunately the small cafe was quiet and several moments later the caffeine-packed beverage was out and in front of Sunset with a wink and smile from Cuppa as she took the few bills of payment, and who had long since gotten used to Sunset spending so much of her free time in the little shop. She had even played her music for the customers on several occasions, enough so that she was largely considered a regular feature of the cafe.

“So what’s the-” Twilight started before Sunset raised a finger for her to wait.

“Three… two… one…” Sunset ticked down, staring at her phone.

The door of the cafe opened a second later, the small bell jingling merrily, drawing Twilight’s eye. Gilda entered, shaking off some of the snow from her shoulders as she glanced around the shop. Even from her spot at the corner Twilight could see the faint air of worry and panic in Gilda’s body; from the tense set of her shoulders, to the darting of her eyes, to the way she seemed to glance over everything with a careful, almost animalistic wariness before her gaze settled on the pair of girls.

One girl in particular, really.

Gilda stepped quickly between the tables and a moment later her arms were around Sunset, kneeling and pulling her girlfriend close.

“Hey babe,” Sunset said with a laugh, wrapping her arms around Gilda. “On lunch?”

“Yeah,” Gilda said, her voice slightly muffled by Sunset’s jacket and hair as the taller girl took several calming breaths.

Lilacs and cherries; the scent always put Gilda’s nerves back to a calm state.

“Got your usual,” Sunset said, handing off the coffee and pastry as Gilda finally let go and took a seat between the two former unicorns. “How’s work?”

“Quiet,” Gilda replied as she scooted her seat closer to Sunset, and fitting an arm around her pulling her in close, nodding to Twilight as she did. “Hey Sparks.”

“Good morning, Gilda,” Twilight greeted warmly, smiling as she watched Sunset relax into her girlfriend’s embrace

Sunset sighed softly in relief as she let herself sink into the familiar scent of engine oil, leather, and smoke that hung around Gilda, nestling warmly against the fur fringe of Gilda’s jacket. Gilda was talking about the small jobs they’d been doing that day, the little things, and Sunset was listening, really… but for the moment she was perfectly fine just letting Gilda’s voice wash over her. Gilda was afraid for her, Sunset knew that, she knew that’s why she always left the shop during her lunch now, it was one of the reasons she had opted to meet Princess Twilight at Cuppa’s rather than at home. It was right in-between the two, and Gilda would get there more quickly.

They could spend more time together.

One day, Sunset knew, she would be able to truly relax somewhere other than Gilda’s arms, but today was not that day.

And that was okay.

Rainbow Dash yawned widely as the streaming sunlight woke her up. The bed was crazy soft and stupid warm, so she didn’t make any extra effort to move. A faint tickle of breath on the back of her neck distracted her though, and she grumbled quietly as she shifted in bed and turned around.

Lightning Dust’s sleeping face stared back at her, the turquoise-skinned girl’s arms looped firmly around Rainbow’s waist. Her short, amber hair fell in a messy tumult kept in check only by its own short length.

Eyes widening, Rainbow felt her breath hitch as she remembered. It was the weekend and she’d spent the night at Lightning’s place.

Originally, Rainbow had invited Lightning over to her place for the weekend, but Lightning lived with her grandmother and, although the older woman was relatively spry and healthy for her age, Lightning preferred not to spend the night elsewhere in case her grandma needed something in the night. A part of Rainbow had wanted to tease Lightning for being such a softie, but an oft unused part her psyche fired up before the words left her mouth. Instead, she thought about it… about the sacrifices that Lightning made, not spending time with friends and others her age to take care of her aging relative, being a caretaker as much as she was being taken care of, or more at times.

A small ember of respect had always burned in Rainbow’s heart for Lightning, but always for her athletic ability and never-say-die attitude. Now, though, Rainbow could see a much greater depth to her, and she could feel the ember becoming a flame.

Rainbow had looked around their apartment when she had come in, and she knew Lightning had been a little embarrassed about it, even if she hadn’t said anything. It was small, with only two bedrooms, a small living room and a kitchen. Enough for the two, but only just… and it also meant that Rainbow had ended up sharing the room with her girlfriend. Something that Lightning hadn’t minded in the slightest but that Rainbow had felt a little ambivalent about.

In the end, though, Rainbow couldn’t deny that she slept much better next to Lightning.

Pushing back the wave of insecurity, Rainbow sidled a little closer to Lightning, letting her arms go around the sleeping girl as she nestled in.

Reacting to Rainbow’s warmth, Lightning curled inwards, her head settling into the lee of Rainbow’s neck as she let out a soft, consistent noise that seemed to start just at the base of her throat and made a gentle vibration in her chest. It was such an odd sound that it took Rainbow several seconds to recognise it.

Lightning Dust was purring.

Rainbow Dash held in a snort of laughter, terrified of waking Lightning up but also knowing she was never, ever going to let Lightning Dust live this down, not in a million years.

Flailing as gently as possible, Rainbow retrieved her phone from Lightning’s night stand and flicked it on, staring at the time. Eleven in the morning… well, she’d definitely slept in later but she did actually want to get up at some point. Opening up her messages, she responded to the ones from her dad that he’d sent earlier in the morning, mostly just wishing her good morning and checking on when she’d be home. Rainbow let him know she’d be back by the evening… probably. Her dad had been pretty understanding about her spending time with Lightning.

Blaze was, so far, the only one she’d even told about her and Lightning’s new relationship status. She was holding off on informing her mother for a variety of reasons, not the least of which because she would use the opportunity to claim she was right about Rainbow Blaze ‘corrupting’ their daughter.

Dash scowled at the thought; whatever her father said, she had no intention of letting that woman anywhere near her personal life. Especially not now that Lightning Dust was in it.

Sighing, Rainbow set her phone down on the pillow and stared at Lightning, who was still contentedly purring in Dash’s arms. A faint warmth filled Rainbow from her chest outwards and, entirely outside of her control, Rainbow could feel her mouth curling into a smile. Possessed of a nameless urge, Rainbow leaned in and brushed her lips against Lightning’s forehead and, knowing there was no one else to hear her, let out a small, girlish giggle.

Rainbow was happy. For the first time in months, she truly felt happy.

Ever since the mess with Sunset, Rainbow had been on what felt like the world’s most literal mood swing that only arched between angry and depressed. Either she was angry about herself, her choices, or a number of other equally anger-inducing factors, or she was depressed that she couldn’t do anything about it.

Now though… she was happy.

Which paradoxically made Rainbow feel bad.

A part of her couldn’t help but stare down at Lightning and wonder if she deserved to be happy. After all, wasn’t everything bad that had happened in the past few months her fault? Shared fault in the case of abandoning Sunset, sure, but she was definitely a part of it; and then there was the matter with Gilda which, even Rainbow knew, was entirely on her own shoulders and nobody else’s.

A stone of guilt settled into Dash’s gut as her thoughts drifted around to all of her failures in the past months; accusing Sunset, leaving her, trusting Scootaloo and the rest of the crusaders, kissing Gilda…

Rainbow sighed as she slowly and carefully extricated herself from her girlfriend’s grip, leaving the lightly snoring (purring) Lightning to curl up in the warm blankets.

Sitting up in bed, Rainbow shivered. She was wearing a pair of thin cotton shorts and a tee-shirt, the latter of which she’d borrowed from Lightning. Her jeans were around the room somewhere but, honestly, Lightning was at least as much of a slob as Rainbow herself and her room showed it. Rainbow Dash didn’t really feel like prospecting for her own trousers so she settled with grabbing one of Dust’s sweaters from the floor that seemed, via dutiful application of the sniff test, at least decently clean. Pulling the sweater over her head, Rainbow laughed a little to herself at the cliche of wearing her girlfriend’s clothes before rising to go forage for food and, hopefully, coffee.

There was only a small hallway that kept the apartment from being what amounted to one large room. Lightning’s room was just across from a linen closet and adjacent to the bathroom. A touch further down from that, just before the living room, was her grandmother, Dust Off’s, room.

Rainbow Dash tiptoed past Dust Off’s door, which was slightly cracked, and slipped around into the kitchen where an older model of coffeemaker sat on the countertop. A token amount of further nosing around turned up a bag of coffee grounds, a filter, and moments later a fresh pot was brewing.

Rainbow sat silently at the small table, lost in thought as the sounds and smells of brewing coffee filled the cool air of the kitchen. The faint sounds of traffic could be heard outside, a sort of background hum of liveliness that Rainbow found agreed with her more than the enforced quiet that the Whitetail Homeowner’s Association insisted on in her own neighborhood.

“Wonder if this is how Sunset always felt,” Rainbow mumbled quietly to herself. “Wondering if you’re good enough to just friggin… be happy.”

The coffeemaker beeped on the counter, alerting Rainbow to its newly filled status, and Dash stood up, still feeling melancholy tickling at the back of her thoughts as she poured herself a mug.

“Mind pouring me one too, hon?”

Rainbow jerked in surprise, only barely managing to not spill the piping hot coffee or drop the mug as she spun around. Standing in a fluffy gray bathrobe at the head of the hallway was an elderly woman who could only be Lightning's grandmother. It was uncanny how similar the two looked, the same shade of turquoise skin, and Rainbow imagined she could see hints of amber strands in the old woman’s iron-grey locks that were tied up in a severe bun. The relaxed smirk on Dust Off’s face, though, was the biggest giveaway though… something in the turn of her mouth made Dash immediately think of all the times Lightning had smirked cockily on the soccer field.

“Uh, y-yeah, no problem,” Rainbow stammered as she grabbed a second mug from the cupboard and set to filling it.

“Good girl,” Dust said with a dry chuckle as she moved slowly over to the table and settled down into the chair across from the one Rainbow had been sitting in. “No cream or sugar, mind you… blame it on too many years in the service.”

Rainbow nodded, bringing both mugs to the table and setting the one without any sugar in it in front of Dust Off. “So… you were in the army?”

“Hell no,” Dust Off said with a laugh before lifting the mug to take a sip and hum appreciatively at the bitter flavor. “Air Force.”

“That’s cool,” Rainbow said with a laugh, taking a drink of her own coffee. “So uhm… I’m Rainbow Dash, it’s uh… nice to meet ya.”

Rainbow extended her hand and Dust Off took it, gripping it with surprising strength for how thin her hand and arm was.

“Oh I know precisely who you are, missy,” Dust Off said with that familiar smirk. “My Lightning hasn’t been able to shut up about you for years.”

The old woman laughed at the goggle-eyed look Rainbow was giving her, a harsh, almost croaking sound as Dust Off slapped her knee. For several moments, Rainbow Dash just stared and worked her jaw noiselessly before finally settling on;

“Huh?”

“You think I’m a liar?” Dust Off asked, but her voice was playful. “First time you trounced her on the field in her Freshman year she came back in such a state, red-faced and swearing up a storm.”

Rainbow Dash snorted in amusement as she remembered the match. Each player had been told to make ten shots at the goal while the goalie defended; Lightning Dust had scored in nine shots, the next closest to her had only made six.

Except for Rainbow, who had sunk all ten.

It was a close one, no doubt, but Rainbow had absolutely been the clear victor, and she had lorded it over Lightning Dust and everyone else in her usual style of braggadocio. That event had been the beginning of their rivalry and every single match the soccer team had played, no matter who they were up against, had always only ever had two sides in both of their eyes: Rainbow Dash and Lightning Dust.

“Oh yes, she was in an absolute rage,” Dust Off said with a cackle. “Talked about how she was going to beat you nonstop for weeks, then months… after a solid year of it was when I knew for sure.”

“Knew what?” Rainbow asked, raising an eyebrow as she took a sip.

Dust Off smiled. “Knew she was in love.”

The coffee went down the wrong pipe as Rainbow inhaled. The coffee mug, miraculously, didn’t spill over as it clattered to the table and Rainbow Dash hacked and choked on her beverage. Through it all Dust Off laughed, her harsh, croaking cackle filling the kitchen before getting up and moving behind Rainbow Dash.

“Teenagers don’t have crap for attention span, hon,” Dust Off said as she slapped Rainbow’s back with a good-natured chuckle. “I might be old but I still remember… my Lightning is no different, either, except where you’re concerned.”

Taking several gasping breaths, Rainbow finally got her voice back as she settled back into her chair. A few more breaths later, as Dust Off returned to her own seat, Rainbow looked up at the older woman.

“Don’t… don’t ya think ‘love’ is kind of a strong word?” Rainbow asked in a cracked voice. “I mean, I’m pretty sure she hated me for a long time.”

“Probably,” Dust Off agreed blithely. “Thing is… my Lightning’s a complicated gal, ain’t much difference between who she hates and who she loves, if that makes any sense.”

“Uhm, not really,” Rainbow admitted.

Dust Off shrugged and took a long drink. “That’s fair, let me put it this way then… what do you think hate and love are?”

Rainbow stared at the old woman for a few moments, trying to work out what answer she wanted, but her expression was unreadable. After a minute or so of awkward staring on Rainbow’s part she finally resigned herself and gave her answer; one she as relatively sure was wrong only because it felt too obvious

“Opposites?”

The old woman smirked. “You’d think that, wouldn’t you? They’re two sides of a coin, though. Hate and love are both passionate, blind, and fly in the face of all good sense and logic.”

“Three things that describe me lately,” Rainbow grumbled.

“Hah!” The old woman barked before taking another drink. “Well, figuring that out is a good first step, anyway…” Pushing her empty mug away the old woman took a deep breath, her eyes turning distant. “My Lightning… she talked about you for so long, always the next time she was going to one up you, or coming home in a rage because she’d failed to do just that… until, oh, about a month and a half ago.”

Rainbow thought back, counting backwards… “A month and a half ago would’ve been right when school started up again so… oh.”

The day Lightning had seen the tail end of what happened between her and Gilda.

“Something must’ve happened because I’ve never seen my granddaughter that quiet,” Dust Off laughed a little at that before continuing. “Something had changed, I knew… so now I’m getting to the crux of my little ramble, how do you feel about Lightning?”

Rainbow’s grip on her mug tightened. “You asking me if I… I love her?”

Dust Off shook her head. “Love takes time, hon, my Lightning had years of it t’fall for you, even if she is young. I don’t expect you to just suddenly trip and fall in love right away, that’s storybook nonsense.”

“Then what am I supposed to say?” Rainbow pleaded. “I’m not good at this stuff, okay? I’m really friggin’ bad at it actually, like, stupid-bad, y’know? I can’t even tell what I’m feeling half the time!”

“Doesn’t mean you don’t try,” Dust Off said firmly. “I’m not tryin’ to put you on the spot, Miss Dash, but I am trying to protect my granddaughter, you understand?”

“I really like her, okay?!” Rainbow almost shouted. “She’s… Lightning’s been on my heels since like, day one! I mean, literally day one of high school, that was soccer tryouts! She’s been there ever since and… I don’t…”

As the words tumbled out of her mouth Rainbow realised something. In all the time she had spent competing with Lightning Dust, she had never once imagined life without the brash, loud-mouthed rivalry the two of them shared. Every day at practice they bickered, every match they competed… and…

Tears slipped down Rainbow’s cheeks slowly as she stared into the swirling dark liquid in her mug.

“Y’know, ma’am…” Rainbow started, “I’m starting to realise I’m taking a lot of things for granted, y’know?”

“You’re a kid,” Dust Off said with a small laugh. “It’s part of bein’ a kid, you’re allowed to take things for granted, to live with a little peace and the expectation that things will always work out. Growing up is where ya learn that ain’t true.”

“I dunno if I love Lightning,” Rainbow said slowly, fidgeting with her mug, “but I’m pretty sure I don’t know what I would do with myself without her, especially now.” Taking a deep breath, Rainbow closed her eyes and tried to feel her way through the darkness of her mind. “Maybe I do… love her, I mean… like, I really, really care about her, though, y’know? When we’re together I feel happy, when we hold hands and… ugh,” Rainbow grimaced, “now I’m starting to sound like Rarity…”

“Well, sounds like you’re on the right track, at least,” Dust Off replied with an easier smile, “and that’s the best you can do sometimes, stayin’ on that track.”

“Yeah well, don’t expect too much,” Rainbow grumbled. “I’m pretty much the poster girl for screwing up lately.”

“Far be it from me to keep ya from makin’ mistakes,” Dust Off said, chuckling a little.

Rainbow grimaced. “I wish someone would.”

“That kinda thing comes easier from peers than us old fogeys,” Dust Off advised before glancing around and reaching towards the counter for the fruit bowl to grab an orange. “Speakin’ of which…”

Even from where she was sitting, Rainbow could tell by how little give the orange had to the old woman’s strong grip that it was underripe. Dust Off gave the orange a few squeezes as she eyed a point just over Rainbow’s shoulder and to her right.

Then she moved, fast as her granddaughter’s namesake and much faster than Rainbow expected a geriatric to be capable of. The orange whipped past Rainbow’s head, bounced off of the wall behind her and went ripping back past Dust Off and into the hallway where it impacted something with a sharp thud.

“OW!”

A familiar voice yelped from the hallway and Dust Off cackled. “Come out and stop snoopin’, Dusty, I taught ya better than that, or at least I thought I taught ya not to get caught that easy.”

“I… I wasn’t-” Lightning stammered as she stepped out of the hallway, rubbing her shoulder slightly and kicking the orange along the floor dejectedly like a tiny, malformed soccer ball.

Rainbow’s face burned as she watched Lightning sheepishly come into view. She wore a sweater, much like Rainbow, and had pulled on a pair of dark blue sweats to ward off the cold. Her normally flared hairdo still hung limp and haphazard from sleep, and there was embarrassment painted all over her face.

She had definitely been listening.

Dust Off leaned closer to Rainbow and spoke in a hissing stage whisper. “Don’t worry, she’s too hung up on you to think poorly of you for any reason, hon.”

“Gramma!” Dust pleaded, her cheeks coloring as Dust Off cackled.

“And if you ever piss her off,” Dust Off continued, “her favorite candy are those orange chocolate slices, and her favorite movie is Casablanca.”

Lightning Dust’s face was beet red by that point and Rainbow had all but forgotten her own embarrassment trying not to burst out laughing at how badly Lightning was living up to her badass persona that she put on at school. Seeing her here, just having woken up and being teased relentlessly by her own grandmother, Rainbow couldn’t help but think that Lightning was actually kind of… girly.

A loud snort escaped Rainbow as her attempts at containment finally failed, and Lightning Dust buried her face in her hands.

“I’m going to just… go back to my room and die now, okay?” Dust mumbled as she turned away.

Dust Off was already up and moving past her though, pushing her back towards the table as she chuckled. “Nonsense, go eat breakfast with your squeeze, hon, I’m gonna go to my room and watch that male stripper movie again.”

“Dead, I am dead,” Lightning groaned.

“Hah! Not before me, young lady!” Dust Off cackled on last time before going into her room and closing the door with an audible thunk.

Silence stretched out between the two remaining girls, with Rainbow biting her lip and trying desperately not to accidentally kill her new girlfriend with shame by bursting out laughing, and Lightning just standing dejectedly by the hallway trying to cease existing.

“Go ahead, get it outta your system,” Lightning said after a minute, waving her hand at Rainbow.

“PPPBBBBBHAAAAHAHAHAHAHA!”

Rainbow fell off of her chair as convulsions of laughter seized her, wrapping her arms around her chest and shaking so hard she couldn’t get to her feet. After another few seconds she was just spasming on the floor, unable to get any air into her to actually make the sound of laughter, instead just slowly turning red in the face as she tried not to die, while trying and failing to drag any air into her hilarity-abused lungs.

“If you die laughing at me,” Lightning began dryly, her eye developing a worrying twitch, “I swear I will die of shame just so I can follow you and kick your ass, Dash.”

Slowly, Rainbow’s chortles ran out of steam and she was left on the floor breathing heavily, sprawled out, and occasionally struck by a spasm of giggles

“Done?” Lightning asked, a note of imploring to her voice.

Nodding from the floor, Rainbow dash took one last steadying breath, and kipped up. “Yeah, I’m done, wow your grandma is friggin’ hilarious, dude.”

Rainbow had half-expected Lightning to get embarrassed again, but instead her features softened and she smiled. “Yeah, she’s pretty much the coolest.”

“It’s weird how much alike you two are,” Rainbow put in, sitting down at the table and leaning on it for support as she got her breath back. “Like, you’ve both got a lot of attitude.”

Lightning crooked an eyebrow up. “Hey kettle, I’m pot,” she said, holding out a hand, and Rainbow let out an arid chuckle.

“Right, uh, fair enough,” Rainbow replied, rubbing the back of her head. “So uh, stupid question, but I guess your grandma is cool with us bein’, y’know…”

Lightning blushed a little, but nodded. “Yeah, she basically knew I was gay before I did… when I came out in Sophomore year she just looked up from her newspaper, gave me the stink eye and said: ‘and you just figured that out?’.”

“Wow, savage,” Rainbow remarked. “Yeah, my dad was cool with it too, but uh, probably ‘cause he’s bi, himself.”

“That’s good,” Lightning replied awkwardly, before catching herself, “I mean, uh… like, not ‘good’ that your dad is bi, but like, that he doesn’t care… and stuff… I mean, it’s cool that he’s bi too, but…” Lightning clapped her hands over her face and took a breath. “Ugh, sorry, I’m… crazy nervous I guess, I’m just glad we don’t have to deal with shitty parents.”

Rainbow’s face fell and she leaned back in her chair. “Don’t relax yet, you haven’t met my shitlord mom.”

Lightning Dust winced. “Oof, you too?”

“Me too?” Rainbow asked, and Lightning shrugged. Rainbow took a breath, fiddling with her empty coffee mug for a minute before starting. “My mom… divorced my dad because he came out as bi… it wasn’t even like, he wanted to bang dudes in the middle of their marriage or anything, he just wanted my mom to know who he was, y’know? Because he loved her.”

“Wow, and she just…” Lightning trailed off. “That’s harsh.”

“Yeah, she freaked out, lost her shit, and went all ‘abomination against nature’ on him,” Rainbow said with a sneer. “Tried to get custody of me, too, because she claimed he would ‘corrupt’ me. Lucky the judge saw through that pile of crap. He still defends her too, which pisses me off.”

“Why?” Lightning asked, reaching out a hand tentatively, and putting it over Rainbow’s.

Rainbow Dash jerked in surprise and stared down at Lightning’s hand, for a moment she felt her breath catch. A moment later though, she let go her mug and their palms rest together, tangling her fingers with Lightnings all while fighting down a furious blush.

“I guess…” Rainbow continued, trying to ignore the burn in her cheeks, “I guess he wants me to have a good relationship with her one day, maybe make her a better person when she gets over herself but… I hate her, Dusty, I really, really hate her.”

“Y’know, I think your dad’s just being a selfish dick,” Lightning said with a frown.

“Hey!” Rainbow pulled her hand away, scowling at Lightning

Lightning Dust backed up in her chair, holding up her hands in surrender. “Woah, sorry… sorry, that was outta line, I just… I didn’t mean like, he was a bad person or anything just… I dunno, maybe because he still loves your mom he… thinks you can help her… or something?” Lightning let out a slow breath and shrugged, folding her elbows on the table and resting her head on her arms. “I dunno, I guess… I just feel like he’s putting it on you and that ain’t fair.”

Rainbow’s scowl diminished a little and, breathing deep, she reached out and took Lightning’s hand again, who smiled up at her shyly.

“M-Maybe,” Rainbow admitted. “Thing is… I don’t want a relationship with my mom… she’s miserable and angry, and she treats my dad like shit, and she’ll probably treat me the same way when she finds out about, y’know… us.”

“Then don’t,” Lightning said firmly, raising her head from the table. “There’s no law that says you have to give your mom the time of day, much less have any kind of relationship with her! It’s not your responsibility, just… fuck’em, you do you, and don’t let your dad tell you otherwise.”

“I guess,” Rainbow said with a grimace. “Friggin’, I don’t even know what I’m doing here, though! I… I’ve never had a girlfriend… or boyfriend… and I think I’m a pretty shitty just, like, regular friend, too.”

Lightning just shrugged. “Well, I mean, me neither, so… first time’s all around I guess, huh, Rainbabe?”

“At least you knew you were gay beforehand,” Rainbow said with a chuckle.

“Yeah, funny thing… wanna know how I knew?” Lightning asked, laughing a little dryly as Rainbow perked up.

“Y-Yeah, sure,” Rainbow replied, looking hopeful.

“Sunset fucking Shimmer,” Lightning answered aridly, and Rainbow’s expression dropped. “And not because I liked her butt, she did have a nice one though… but because I tried to pick a fight with her and she took me to fucking church.”

Rainbow blinked in surprise before leaning forward. “What happened?”

“Doesn’t really matter,” Lightning said with a laugh. “Long story short, she knew I was chasing you before I did… and uh, kinda threw it in my face…”

For a moment, Rainbow Dash just stared in disbelief before recalling back to the years she’d spent watching Sunset tear the school down, socially speaking, and rebuild it in her image. Back then she hadn’t really been able to appreciate how much work it must have been, but now it was terrifying. Sunset, once upon a time, really had been a serious terror.

“Damn, that’s low, though,” Rainbow said after a few minutes. “Threatening you with something like that.”

Lightning just shook her head. “Actually… funny thing, she never threatened me with it,” Lightning fidgeted a little and laughed nervously. “I was actually like, fuckin’ terrified that she would for the longest time but… she never did. She just used it to gut-punch me and y’know what? I’m kinda grateful.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah,” Lightning insisted. “Otherwise I wouldn’t’ve realised that I liked you… I thought I hated you, but she made me realise that I didn’t… I just liked you and, I guess… didn’t know how to deal, right?”

“I guess,” Rainbow said thoughtfully, sitting back in her chair. “Kind of a shitty way to do it though.”

“Funny thing too,” Lightning said with a smirk. “I figured she’d toss a slur my way or something… or like, make fun of me for being gay, but she didn’t… guess now we know why, huh?”

Rainbow nodded as Lightning got up. Grabbing a mug of her own, along with Rainbow’s from the table, Lightning set to filling herself a mug and refilling Dash’s. She was finished and about to turn back around when she felt a sudden warm pressure on her back as Rainbow’s arms went around her waist. Lightning Dust blushed madly as she felt Rainbow rest her chin on her shoulder.

“H-Hey,” Lightning stammered, unable to keep a smile from growing on her face.

“Hey,” Rainbow replied, her voice soft and a little unsteady.

“You okay, Rainbabe?” Dust asked.

Rainbow Dash nodded again, a little shakily, as Lightning picked up the mugs and turned, steering them towards the couch in the small living room rather than back to the table. It was a worn out thing, but comfortable and soft; the kind of couch that swallowed you up if you sat on it too long and had the tendency to lull unwary television watchers to sleep late at night. Lightning had lost count of the number of times she’d fallen asleep on the thing while watching t.v. or doing homework.

Setting the mugs down, Lightning sat on the couch and motioned for Rainbow to join her, which she did as she claimed her mug from the table and took a sip. Grabbing a nearby blanket, Lightning pulled it over the pair of them as she leaned against Rainbow Dash, with Rainbow fulfilling a long-held fantasy of Lightning’s as she slung an arm around the amber-haired girl and pulled her close.

Lightning let out a hum of perfect contentment as she took a sip of her coffee. This was the life… this was everything Lightning wanted, at least short term, and it was almost all she could do not to start giggling uncontrollably with how happy she was.

“So… toldja ‘bout my mom,” Rainbow said quietly. “Guess… yours wasn’t too great either, huh?”

Lightning Dust just shrugged, nestling closer to Rainbow Dash as she did. “Dunno… never really knew her… other than that she was a really shitty person.”

“What happened?”

“She had me pretty young,” Lightning said, “and no dad, so Gramma did a lot of the work, y’know? Then I guess mom got in with some bad folks, got into drugs… got so bad Gramma said she was gettin’ ready to fight her own daughter for me… said she was afraid she’d come home one day and find out my mom had sold me for drug money.”

Rainbow Dash’s jaw dropped open in raw shock as Lightning continued.

“Guess I was about two or three when mom just picked up and left,” Lightning took another drink of her coffee and leaned her head against Rainbow’s shoulder. “Gramma said she left a note, and me, that she stole some jewelry and the t.v., and just… hauled off. Far as I know we never heard from her again.”

For several moments, Rainbow just sat silently, unable to fully process what Lightning had told her, settling instead for pulling her former rival closer.

“That’s intensely fucked up, Dusty,” Rainbow finally said in a hollow voice.

Lightning Dust chuckled. “I guess so, I wouldn’t know… I don’t even remember what she looked like other than some old photos, all I know is what Gramma told me when I asked about my parents.”

“Shit, that old lady doesn’t hold back, huh?” Rainbow said with a dry laugh.

“Nope,” Lightning said, joining her girlfriend in laughter. “She really doesn’t… you’ll have to trust me on that one.”

The late morning faded into the early afternoon as the two girls slowly drained their mugs, but neither Rainbow nor Lightning Dust felt the slightest inclination to move from where they were. For Rainbow’s part, she still felt exhausted; not physically but emotionally, maybe even spiritually, and definitely mentally. Everything that had happened with Sunset and Gilda, with her friends… it weighed so heavily on Dash that sometimes it felt like she couldn’t even run. As for Lightning, she wanted this afternoon to last forever… it was everything she’d dreamt of for years, with Rainbow Dash as her girlfriend, cuddling on the couch, just… existing.

“Hey, Dusty?” Rainbow said, finally breaking the silence, and Lightning looked up at her questioningly. “So… how much didja hear, when me’n your grandma were talking?”

Lightning flushed. “Uh… most of it, honestly… I woke up right after you got up and, uh… I guess I was kinda hoping you’d come back to bed but then I heard talking from the kitchen and, well…”

“S’okay,” Rainbow assured her. “I’m not mad or anything I just… I told your gran that I didn’t know how I felt exactly and just… I kinda feel shitty about it.”

Lightning shook her head. “It’s okay… I mean, I get it, you don’t… hafta feel exactly the same way, y’know? I’m just happy you’re giving me a shot,” Rainbow felt Lightning tighten her grip around her waist as she continued, “and if it d-doesn’t work out then, h-hey, at least I t-tried, r-right?”

Towards the end, Lightning’s words started to falter and choke, and Rainbow saw the first glint of tears at the edges of Lightning’s eyes. Steeling herself, she grabbed both of their empty mugs and set them off to the side before settling her hand on Lightning’s cheek and pulling her in.

The sudden movement caught Lightning off-guard, and she squeaked in surprise as she suddenly found Rainbow’s lips pressed against hers. A moment later, Lightning melted against Rainbow, pulling herself closer until she was sitting in Rainbow’s lap as Rainbow trailed her fingers up and down Lightning’s back and sides.

It wasn’t that Rainbow had an issue with realising that she was gay, or at least that she was gay for Lightning; it was more that she had never really put any thought or time into the notion of her sexuality at all. It just seemed like something that happened to other people for the most part, so suddenly being in a relationship seemingly out of nowhere had put her on her heels, and when Rainbow Dash was put on her heels her first instinct was to take back the initiative.

To act.

So she kissed Lightning Dust, she lost herself in the faintly rainy, grassy scent that surrounded the girl, the smell of the soccer field. Rainbow guessed she probably smelled very similar given how much time the two of them spent on the practice turf. Rainbow let her fingers trailed along the firm, defined muscle of Lightning’s back and abdomen, and tasted her lips. For all of Rainbow’s reticence and insecurity, she couldn’t deny that holding Lightning like this, being with her like this, felt right.

Pulling away, Rainbow felt a small surge of satisfaction at the slightly drunken look on Lightning’s face.

“Okay, lemme get this out, alright?” Rainbow said softly, and Lightning just nodded, her features sobering. “So… I’m not so good with grey area’s and ambiguous crap, right? I wanna know where I stand and crap because it’s like, with grey areas it's like someone couldn’t decide what to do and now I’m left holding the bag, so I’m just gonna say it: Lightning Dust, you’re my girlfriend now, okay?”

Lightning blinked in surprise, her cheeks coloring at the sudden statement. “I… uhm, we… I wasn't before?”

Rainbow shrugged. “I mean, yeah but no one ever really… said it out loud, y’know? So I’m just saying it so it’s out there and stuff, okay? It’s just… the way my brain works.”

“Okay,” Lightning said, chuckling a little. “Girlfriends, like ones that kiss and stuff, I’m good with that, obviously.”

“Y-Yeah,” Rainbow agreed, her own cheeks reddening a little. “So, I’m not super good at feelings, and I say and do really dumb stuff sometimes, but… I want you to know, I’m gonna try to make this thing work, like, all the way.” Rainbow’s features took a much more serious cast. “I don’t really do things halfway, I don’t really think I can, y’know? Like, either I do it or I don’t, and this? I wanna do this, so I’m not gonna half-ass being your girlfriend, Dusty, period.”

Lightning felt like her heart was swelling, hearing every word that Rainbow was saying and knowing it was for her. The tears that started out as fearful, born of the terrible hunch that Rainbow was just humoring her, turned happy as they trickled down her cheeks, and Lightning Dust curled happily against Rainbow Dash.

“I… I’ll do my best, Dusty,” Rainbow whispered, burying her face against Lightning’s amber hair. “I’m tired of screwing up, I’m just… bad at stuff, but I wanna make this work, okay?”

“I know,” Lightning said with a happy sob. “I’m not screwing off anytime soon, alright? I’ve had to live with chasing you on the soccer team and pulling your ass out of the fire for three years, Rainbabe, I’m not going anywhere now that I finally caught you, okay?”

“Heh, yeah, okay,” Rainbow agreed.

Lightning sighed, feeling relaxation melt through her entire body. It was like all of her muscles were relaxing all at once as she just let Rainbow hold on to her. She was so comfortable that a part of her just wanted to fall back asleep, so she could be forgiven for the next words that tumbled out of her mouth without her brain checking them first.

“I love you…”

Rainbow froze, as did Lightning the moment her brain caught up with her mouth. Panic immediately surged through Lightning’s brain as she tried to figure out a way to not have said what she just said. Especially after eavesdropping and hearing from Rainbow that she wasn’t sure if she felt that same way. Now she would feel pressured and it was-

“I… love you too,” Rainbow said softly.

Now it was Lightning’s turn to freeze, not certain she had actually heard what Rainbow had said accurately.

“A-are you sure?” Lightning asked in a voice that sounded almost frail, it was one that Rainbow found she didn’t like, she much preferred Lightning being brash and loud.

Rainbow nodded. “Yeah, I mean… y’don’t have to be like, girlfriends or whatever, to love someone right? I’m pretty sure that like… whatever I’m feeling, it’s definitely some kind of love so… yeah, I love you.”

Lightning’s whole body went slack and she laughed quietly.

“Right, damn, okay, uhhh… whew,” Lightning mimed wiping sweat off of her forehead. “Ever feel like you just back-pedaled off a cliff only to find solid ground? Real come-to-jesus moment, that was.”

“Heh, yeah, I say stupid crap all the time,” Rainbow agreed. “Same reason too, so, uh, y’know, just in case I say something dumb? That’s why.”

“Fair’s fair, Rainbabe,” Lightning said with a laugh. “You put up with me, I’ll put up with you.”

“I’ll take that,” Rainbow held up a hand and Lightning reached up and gripped it for a moment before turning her hand to twine their fingers together.

“There, now it’s extra gay,” Lightning said with a laugh and Rainbow snorted, smirking as she leaned in and kissed Lightning quickly on the lips.

“Okay, so, probably a dumb question, right?” Rainbow started, “but I figure I oughta ask… what the hell is Casablanca?”

Lightning’s jaw dropped and her eye reacquired that twitch from earlier. “Oh… Rainbabe, guess it’s movie time, huh?”

Her name was Abacus Cinch, and she was the Principal of Crystal Preparatory Academy; of one of the most prestigious academic institutions in all of Canterlot outside of a four year university. Crystal Prep, as it was colloquially known, had seen almost every major influential figure of the modern city of Canterlot study within its walls from songstress and idol Sapphire Shores to the Mayor of Canterlot itself, Erebos Sombra, who was rumored to be up for senatorship next year.

The Academy had also hosted two particular figures of note if not notoriety; Twilight Velvet, an editor renowned within literary circles for her work on the Daring Do series, and Night Light, an extremely successful software engineer who, indeed, had written many educational programs still used by Crystal Prep Academy.

Both parents had performed extremely well in their years at the Academy according to the records which spanned the entire century and a half of the Academy’s existence, but neither them nor their son, Shining Armor, looked to possess even half of the raw intellect and talent displayed by their daughter: Twilight Sparkle.

Twilight Sparkle, who now stood across from Cinch, holding out a manila envelope to the Principal.

“Are you aware that your parents alerted me to a missing persons report regarding you, Miss Sparkle?” Principal Cinch asked with a raised eyebrow, not taking the envelope.

The shadows of her office hid much of the Principal’s meticulously kept appearance; her pale opal skin which contrasted with her dark, wine-colored hair.

“I suspected as much,” Twilight answered cooly, and Cinch felt her respect for the young girl go up a notch.

Not long ago all it would have taken was a cross word or a harsh enough glare in Twilight’s direction to send her scurrying, or at least cow her into submission. Now, though, she was enduring Cinch’s full gaze without a hint of concern.

“However, as of two days ago that’s no longer their concern,” Twilight continued. “I already contacted the Canterlot Police Precinct to forward them the same paperwork, the report is probably already closed.”

Another notch up, Cinch thought as she took the envelope finally and opened it, pulling a sheaf of papers free.

“I’ll peruse them fully when I have a moment,” Cinch assured Twilight as she flipped through the papers, “but do please summarise what it is I’m looking at, would you kindly?”

“Emancipation paperwork,” Twilight said simply, her voice betraying no emotion as she fiddled with the odd pendant hanging from her neck.

It was blocky and ugly, Cinch had the thought when Twilight had walked in, but then again the girl had never possessed anything resembling a fashion sense. Cinch thanked the heaven’s for the fashion stylings inherent in the Crystal Prep Academy uniform that Twilight was wearing… the idea of the girl being responsible for her own appearance on a day to day basis was appalling.

“You’ll find all of the signatures in order,” Twilight kept talking as Cinch made a show of paging through the papers. “It also has my new listed address on page seven of the paperwork, as well as photocopies of my birth certificate, social security card, and passport.”

“I see,” Cinch said simply, eyeing the pages as she passed them.

One thing had caught her eye, however. Something that Twilight Sparkle had neither addressed nor mentioned.

“I cannot help but notice,” Cinch said as she set the papers slowly onto her desk, “that these papers were filed less than a month ago and, to my knowledge, this process usually takes anywhere from four to six months, and that’s assuming all goes well.”

“You’re not wrong,” Twilight replied, not offering any further explanation.

Abacus Cinch smirked. She wasn’t sure what had changed about the girl, but she couldn’t deny that she approved. There was something almost… ruthless in her, now. Twilight was already at the top of her level grade-wise, and the only thing that was holding her back, at least in Cinch’s opinion, was her timid behaviour.

“Understand I’m simply asking as a… concerned educator of young minds,” Cinch said with a smile that might have been warm if it had touched her eyes. “Is everything alright at home?”

“My home is perfectly fine,” Twilight replied, her jaw clenching slightly. “And my home is where I decide it is, and as for the emancipation I just applied something you teach everyone here at Crystal Prep.”

“Oh?” Principal Cinched gave an intrigued chuckle. “And what’s that?”

“Proper motivation,” Twilight replied.

“Of course,” Cinch said with a small smile. “And I’m sure you’ll have considered the matter of tuition, I will have to prorate your prior tuition back to your parents now that they are no longer-”

“The cheque is in the envelope,” Twilight said tersely.

Cinch raised an eyebrow. The Twilight Sparkle she had known during her tenure at Crystal Prep would never have interrupted or cut off a teacher, much less a principal. Something had changed, and changed drastically. As if the paperwork that Twilight had just submitted weren’t proof enough of that, of course.

Without a word, Cinch reached further into the envelope and drew out a paper cheque, just as Twilight had promised. On it was the full tuition amount for the remainder of the year.

“Well, I suppose everything is in order then,” Cinch said, folding her arms neatly on her desk. “Was there anything else you needed, my dear?”

Twilight looked pensive for a moment before nodding. “The Friendship Games are this year, right? Against Canterlot High?”

“They are indeed,” Cinch confirmed, feeling a cool satisfaction bloom in her chest. “Why do you ask?”

“I was hoping to be part of the team that takes part,” Twilight said firmly. “My grades are the highest in the school, I want to… to prove what I’m capable of.”

Abacus Cinch grinned broadly. She had feared she would have to resort to darker methods to ensure Twilight’s cooperation in the Games. After all, she couldn’t have her star student failing to participate in one of the most widely watched events of the academic year.

“That can most certainly be arranged,” Cinch replied easily. “I’m sure the rest of the team will be thrilled at your inclusion.”

“I’m sure,” Twilight replied through clenched teeth.

“One last thing,” Cinch said, her voice turning quiet. “I understand you’ve had some rather poor experiences with my daughter, Sunny Flare, is that right?”

Twilight’s eyes narrowed but she kept the look of distaste off of her face at the sound of her bully’s name. “Nothing serious, Principal Cinch.”

“I’m happy to hear that,” Cinch said with an oily smile. “Especially since you two will be working closely together during the Games, she is in the top percentile, after all.”

“Of course,” Twilight replied tonelessly. “I look forward to working with her.”

Cinch smiled again, that viperous expression that Twilight loathed. “Good, you don’t know how happy I am to hear that.”

Giving a perfunctory nod, Twilight turned on her heel and walked out of the office, letting the door close behind her as she made her way towards the staircase leading down to the rest of the school. A large part of her had considered just dropping out and pursuing research into the artifacts. After all, she was heralding a brand new field of science, it wasn’t as though she could get a degree in it somewhere else.

Besides, Twilight had always worked best self-taught.

“Ladybug?”

Twilight froze as she made the second landing of the stairs, turning slowly to look back up the stairs the way she had come. Standing at the head of the stairs was a familiar, pink-haired figure wearing a look of absolute worry on her face that was warring with relief.

‘Rule Two: be friendly, but don’t be friends,’ the voice of Storm King echoed in Twilight’s mind. He’d taught her a lot since his release, and not just about artifacts.

Taking a deep breath, she turned fully and nodded to the woman who had been like an older sister to her for most of her life.

“Dean Cadenza,” Twilight said stiffly, in a voice that only barely acknowledged the woman’s presence. “I was just going back to classes, was there something you needed?”

‘There’s no need t’be unfriendly, no need t’be rude,’ Storm had said. ‘Makin’ friends is dangerous, though… friends want owt from ye; favors, special attention, n’too many friends means too much goin’ out.’

“Twilight,” Cadence said breathlessly. “We’ve been looking everywhere for you,” she descended the stairs slowly, almost unable to believe that Twilight was right in front of her. “Your parents are worried sick! You’re brother is going out of his mind! Where have you been?!”

“At home,” Twilight said, a part of her was struggling to keep her voice steady.

‘Be friendly, don’t be friends.’

“Home?!” Cadence said in disbelief. “I’ve been at your home almost every night trying to help your parents through-”

“That’s not my home,” Twilight said sharply. “Zee isn’t welcome there, so neither am I.”

“Zee has been hurting you!” Cadence cried, reaching out and grabbing for Twilight’s hands.

Twilight pulled back, glaring up at Cadence with a dark look in her eyes. Cadence blinked in confusion… for a moment she could have sworn that Twilight’s eyes were glowing.

“Zee is my whole world,” Twilight whispered harshly. “And that’s not new… she’s been there for me for years,” her whole body was shaking slightly as she pulled back from Cadence. “I’ve been bullied all my life! I never told Zee about any of it and yet she was always there for me! She always made me feel better, told me I was good enough, smart enough, p-pretty enough! She never put me down or expected me to be more! SO WHERE WERE YOU?!”

Tears had begun streaming down Twilight’s face as Cadence stared in shock at the younger girl’s outburst.

“I was never just enough for anyone!” Twilight spat. “I always had to be smarter! And better! I always had to ‘live up to my potential’! Well, here I am! Living up to my potential!”

By the end, Twilight was shouting at Cadence who was backing up and away from the young student. The girl she had looked at like family, who was now staring daggers at her with tears pouring down her cheeks and a vicious, snarling expression on her face.

“I’m going to live up to my potential,” Twilight muttered in a low voice, taking a deep breath as she stepped back from Cadence and wiped her eyes. “And I’m going to do it with the one person who always loved me for who I was, not who I could be.”

“Ladybug,” Cadence sobbed, “I am so sorry that you ever felt like we didn’t love you… I don’t even care how or why, because if it happened then it was our fault.” Cadence reached out again, tentatively and slowly as she tried to close the distance between her and Twilight, but Twilight just backed away.

“Please,” Cadence sobbed. “You can drop out, you can even stay with Zee, you can do whatever you want just… please… please-”

“You just don’t get it!” Twilight hissed furiously, and the venom in her tone put Cadence back a step. “You don’t get to tell me what I can do or who I can love, alright!? No one does!”

Cadence stared, wide eyed at Twilight’s face. Now she was sure of it… she wasn’t hallucinating or seeing things… Twilight’s eyes were almost literally burning. Her sclera were an ugly, almost radioactive green, and darkness drifted from the edges of her eyes like errant shadows.

And her eyes were glowing red.

“I’m going to be the greatest scientist in any world,” Twilight said, her lip curling up as her hand went to idly rest over the center of her pendant. “And Zee will be with me for every step… the rest of you can get out of the way.”

As Twilight turned and walked away from the shell-shocked Dean of Students, in the depths of her mind a bell was tolling thunderously; but rather than being deafening, distracting, or unpleasant, Twilight felt the sound clearing away all of the extraneous thoughts, leaving her clear-minded and focused. There was a source of energy, a source that dwarfed even Zee’s gauntlets, at Canterlot High School, and all she had to do was find it.

A task that would be all too easy as a member of the Friendship Games team, and especially easy since she already had a lead. A certain student that Storm knew specifically and unequivocally was in possession of the same power these artifacts contained, but seemingly without any object to serve as a lens or focus. A girl who was currently dating one Gilda Grimfeather, had red and gold hair, an amber complexion, and was wheelchair-bound.

That had narrowed it down easily and a quick hack of the schools systems had given them a name as well as an impressive academic record. If it had been from a school of any note Twilight might’ve been impressed, but as it was she knew the bar was set comparatively low at public schools.

“A natural channel,” Twilight muttered. “First thing’s first: find Sunset Shimmer.”

Back upstairs, Cadence had returned to her office adjacent to Principal Cinch’s and sat down at her desk. It was as though something had been emptied out of her and all it had left was a hole in her heart. Tears trickled down her face as Cadence picked up one of the framed photos on her desk. It showed a Cadence and Shining Armor, both much younger and in their senior year at Crystal Prep. At Cadence’s side was a small, toothily grinning Twilight, a gap in her teeth from one of her baby teeth having fallen out.

“Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake.” Teardrops fell over the photo as Cadence sniffled. “Clap your hands and d-do a… do a l-little…”

Cadence clenched her eyes shut as she set the photo down and grabbed her phone out of her pocket. Hitting the speed-dial, she held the phone up and a moment later Shining Armor’s voice came through on the other end.

//Cady? Is everything okay?// Shining asked in a worried tone.

“No, everything isn’t okay, Shiny,” Cadence said, tears robbing her voice of its usual melody. “I found her, Shiny… she’s here, your sister is here at school and… Shiny, there’s something wrong with her.”

Silence stretched out over the phone line as Shining Armor sat poleaxed at his desk at the Canterlot Precinct. Cadence could hear him tapping away at his computer for several moments before the sound of a hiss came over the phone.

//No…// Shining whispered, and Cadence could hear the horror in his voice. //No goddamn way.//

“Shining? What’s wrong?” Cadence begged, gripping the edge of the framed photo hard. “Shining?!”

//The missing person’s report on Twily was closed this morning,// Shining said in a hollow voice. //Attached to it is a note saying that Twilight herself had it closed on account of her being… being an emancipated minor.//

Cadence nearly dropped her cell phone as she felt her breath catch in her chest. “Shiny… something’s terribly wrong with her… I know you might not believe me when I tell you this but I saw something when I talked to her.”

//What did you see?// Shining asked, his voice taking on that careful, sterile tone of enforced calm. //Cady?//

“Her eyes were burning, Shiny,” Cadence said quietly. “There was this darkness and… this awful red light in her eyes… it was like… like she was possessed. I know it sounds crazy but I swear it’s true.”

//I believe you,// Shining replied softly. //I… I believe you, I promise.//

“Shiny?” Cadence felt a hollow shock at his blatant acceptance of her claim, a part of her thought he might just be humoring her but… no, Shining Armor wasn’t that kind of person. “Shining, are you okay?”

//Yeah, I’m… well, not fine but… yeah,// Shining replied in an uneven voice. //H-Hey, Cady… you remember that story I told you, back in December, those two girls?//

Cadence sniffled but laughed a little as she remembered it. Even if it had been an awful accident it had been a wonderfully romantic story.

“The lovebirds?” Cadence asked quietly. “The girl who carried her injured girlfriend to the ER on bleeding legs? Yeah, I remember.”

//There’s something else about that I didn't tell you… the same kind of… weird, but weirder,// Shining replied in a low voice.

“Weirder than glowing eyes?” Cadence asked incredulously.

“Massively,” Shining answered. “I’ll catch you up on it at home tonight… we’ll figure out what to do then, alright?”

“Alright, and Shining?”

//Yeah?//

“I love you,” Cadence said. “So much… I love you so, so much.”

//I love you too, Cady.//

Author's Notes:

Welcome to Act III
Alternate Title Chapter; Everyone Drinks Coffee