Becky tried to calm her nerves as she hurried through the corridors towards the office, Rainbow following a half-step behind.

"Isn't Lily one of the bad guys you just mentioned?" Rainbow asked.

"We're not sure what side she's on, now keep your voice down!" Becky hissed. Thankfully, Agent Drops had already gone back to the surface to keep an eye on the equipment and personnel that Senator Lily had brought with her. "There's a vent in the room next to the office that you can use to listen in on what we're saying. Just make sure that no-one catches you!"

"Alright, alright, I get it," Rainbow huffed.

"You'd better! Because if you get caught you could get the whole lot of us in some seriously deep shit!" Becky shot. She felt herself tense as she spotted the office corridor ahead, but the area was conspicuously devoid of guards.

Torn between relief and suspicion, Becky gestured for Rainbow to slip into the room next to the main office, rolling her eyes as the Rainboom zoomed inside using her super speed, before stepping up to the office door. She could just about hear voices inside, which stopped abruptly when she knocked. Tara opened the door a few seconds later. "Ah, Becky, er, come in."

Becky raised an eyebrow as she stepped inside. Andrew and Devall were both present, standing against the one wall, but Becky's eyes were drawn straight to Senator Lily.

Lily was lounging on an office chair as if it were a throne, her presence commanding attention even as she did little more than idly inspect her fingernails. She was wearing a long white lab coat, opened at the front to reveal her simple Enclave uniform, and she had a strange metal headband placed securely over her long black locks.

"Doctor Shoichet, it's a pleasure to see you again," Lily said in greeting. Becky couldn't honestly return the sentiment, so she just nodded in return. As soon as Tara closed the door Lily straightened up and brushed dust from her pants before saying, "Now then, we're almost ready to begin."

Devall raised an eyebrow. "Everyone you asked for is here, Senator, and I'm sure you enjoyed summoning all of us like servants, but I think it's about time you told us what exactly this is all about."

Lily gave him a mocking grin. "Yes, everyone that I asked to speak to is here. However, it appears that Doctor Shoichet brought a friend along." Becky's heart leapt into her throat as Lily called out, "Oh, Rainbow Dash? I know you're listening, so why don't you just come in here so we can talk like civilized adults."

The others all turned to stare at Becky in shock, then whipped their gazes to the door as it opened and Rainbow stepped through warily, one hand on the hilt of her sword.

"I just want to talk, you won't be needing that," Lily said with a pointed look at the blade.

Rainbow snorted and kicked the door shut, gripping the hilt of the sword tightly so she'd be ready to whip it out at a moment's notice. "I'll decide whether I need it or not."

Lily just sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine."

Glancing surreptitiously at the others, Becky noticed that Andrew and Tara were looking just as tense as she felt. Devall, on the other hand, was looking from Rainbow to Becky and back again in stunned disbelief. It was plain to see that he was slowly, almost unwillingly, putting two and two together. "You've been working with the Rainbooms?" He asked quietly.

"You didn't know?" Lily asked, delight written clearly across her face. "I admit, I didn't know myself until I realized that she was here with Doctor Shoichet, but I thought that you of all people would know." She smirked and leaned back in her chair. "Honestly, I'm most surprised at you, Lieutenant Colonel. I thought such subterfuge was beneath you."

Andrew glared at Becky, though she noticed that his hand was inching subtly towards his plasma pistol. "I wasn't aware that Rainbow Dash was here, but I assure you that I'll be having a very thorough word with our security team later."

"Oh, don't play that game with me, and keep your hands up where I can see them," Lily said impatiently. "I've already said I'm just here to talk."

"How did you know I was here?" Rainbow cut in.

Lily smiled and rubbed at her chest absently. "I've been manoeuvring through the plots and intrigues of the Enclave since before any of you were born. I'm a little embarrassed to admit it, but I am older than I look. Anyone who manages to survive as long as I have among the pit of vipers that is the Enclave leadership either has a keenly honed survival instinct, as I do, or has a simply staggering amount of luck."

Becky frowned at her. Something wasn't adding up, either with her explanation or with her presence. "Why don't we skip to the part where you tell us exactly what you want. You say you want to talk, so what do you want to talk about?"

Shifting around in her seat again, Lily adjusted her uniform's collar as she said airily, "It's perfectly simple, really. I want Acheson and Major Owens dead." Stunned silence was the only response to her statement. "Oh, don't look at me like that. Every single one of you is planning on killing him or having him killed anyway, so why are you so bothered by me wanting the same thing?"

"Whatever happened to subtlety?" Becky asked. "I thought you were a seasoned politician: This isn't cloak and dagger, this is a god-damned sledgehammer to the face."

Lily laughed softly. "My dear, the reason I do so well at this game is because I know when to misdirect and obfuscate, and when to cut the shit and lay my cards on the table. We haven't really seen eye to eye recently-"

"You voted to prolong this pointless conflict with the Brotherhood of Steel," Andrew shot.

"It seemed the best way to achieve a lasting peace and fulfil my goals at the same time," Lily countered.

"Lasting peace?!" Andrew scoffed.

Lily gave him an unamused look. "Yes, Lieutenant Colonel, lasting peace. I don't trust the Brotherhood of Steel as far as I can throw them; I believed that if we signed a treaty with them our organizations would inevitably come to blows once again at some point, and the Brotherhood would use that time to build up their forces and their technology so that they could face us on a more even footing." She brushed a stray strand of hair out of her face. "After the ill-conceived assault on the Citadel, however, I trust the Brotherhood a hell of a lot more than I trust Acheson."

"I don't give a shit who you trust," Becky shot. "How the hell can we trust you? You've already admitted that you have your own hidden agenda, so, for the last time, what the fuck are you after?"

Lily smiled ruefully. "I want to live, pure and simple. Preferably for as long as is physically possible."

Becky shook her head in bemusement, feeling almost underwhelmed. "That's it?! That's all you're after?!" She spat incredulously.

"As someone who has spent a lot of time around death, I'd hardly dismiss the importance of living," Lily replied. "I've spent decades working to unlock the secrets of prolonging life. I know there are some who have had success through FEV, or implanting their brain into a robot and such nonsense, but I prefer the thought of living as an actual human being."

Becky and Tara shared a confused look. "But… what does that have to do with Project Exodus?" Tara asked.

Lily snorted. "I thought you were supposed to be the smart one. Magic, dear. I don't care about domination or leadership, all I want is access to as much pure Equestrian magic as I can get my hands on, and the scholars that they undoubtedly have that can teach me how to apply it to my research."

"That's…" Becky closed her mouth, swallowing her retort. She had been going to say that it was insane, that magic wouldn't be of more use to her for that purpose than anything else, but Sunset's memories told her otherwise; the Princesses of Equestria alone were a prime example of what magic could do for a lifespan, and that was before one considered what dark magic could do.

"It's a little trite, I admit," Lily said, apparently misreading her expression. "Still, we all have our dreams, mine are just a little more unusual than others." Her expression suddenly hardened, sending a shiver down Becky's spine. "This is why I'm against Acheson. He and I agreed that Project Exodus, and it's resources, would be left alone. Since he has betrayed my trust, I'll throw my lot in with all of you, instead."

Andrew eyed her suspiciously. "You're being awfully blasé about all of this. What makes you think we'd even consider killing Acheson?"

Lily sighed and gave him an exasperated look. "You've been colluding with the Rainbooms for well over a week, and trying to avoid involving either yourselves or your followers in the conflict with the Brotherhood for just as long." She gestured to Rainbow Dash. "Should I bother mentioning the intelligence reports that you all put together just in case this brainless bluebird decided to show up?"

"Hey, you watch your mouth!" Rainbow snapped.

"Oh? Have you actually followed anything that we've been saying so far?" Lily asked mockingly.

Rainbow scowled at her. "You're a selfish bitch who trusted the wrong egghead asshole, so now you've come here and you're spilling everything, even the stuff that would get you killed by the egghead asshole, so these dorks will be more likely to trust you and take you in." There was a multicolored blur and Rainbow was suddenly standing behind Lily with her blade resting against the Senator's throat. "You've also got a backup plan just in case these guys decide that you're not worth keeping alive."

Lily swallowed hard, trying to edge away from the sword as calmly as she could. "Forgive me for believing that you were merely a dumb jock. You're wrong about one thing, though. I'm far too valuable for the team here to cast aside. Between myself and everyone else in this room, we control enough of the Enclave to challenge Acheson and Owens openly. Besides-" she glanced at Andrew, "-with Horrigan gone, you're going to need all the help you can get."

Becky chuckled darkly. "It seems your spies aren't as thorough as we thought. Horrigan is alive and well, and will soon be back on his feet, so it looks like we don't really need you after all." Lily tensed, but Becky just shook her head. "I guess you've got luck and a survival instinct. Let her go, Rainbow."

The relief in the room was palpable as Rainbow put her sword away. Allies or not, having an armed and alert Rainboom in the room was enough to put everyone on edge. Lily put a hand to her chest and allowed herself to take a few slow breaths in and out to calm herself. "Horrigan's alive?" She said when she was ready. "You've kept that quiet."

Becky shrugged. "It seemed like the best move. If most of our personnel think Horrigan is down then it'll sway-"

"Sway public opinion in your favour by making it look like Acheson is willing to betray and sacrifice anyone just to get what he wants," Lily finished, nodding. "The fact that Acheson's gambit failed will play into your hands even more, as it portrays both him and Owens as incompetent." She grinned up at Becky. "Well played. So when are you planning on confronting Acheson?"

"We're not, not yet," Becky replied. "If we challenge Acheson now then his cronies will just fade into the background and work against us from behind the scenes. We need to take them all out in one fell swoop, and to do that, we're going to need the Brotherhood."

Lily gave her a calculating stare. "You're a lot more devious than I expected, Doctor. Very well, what do you want me to do?"

Becky smiled sardonically. "Simple. Write down everything you know about Acheson, Owens, and their followers, along with everything you know about their research." She turned away, glancing over her shoulder as he placed a hand on the door handle. "You can give a copy of it to Rainbow Dash when you're done."

Not daring to look back again, Becky opened the door and hurried out into the corridor, keenly aware of Lily's eyes following her right up until she closed the door behind her. It took Becky a few seconds to realize that her heart was hammering in her chest.

Lily was dangerous. All of the Enclave leaders were, really, but the Senator was something else. The fact that she had somehow known about the details about their alliance with the Rainbooms was downright terrifying, not to mention absolutely impossible. The only people who knew about the intel Becky had shared with Rainbow were herself, Tara, and Andrew, and none of them had spoken about it within earshot of another living soul. They had even been careful to make sure that there weren't any robots around when they spoke of it.

As she rounded a corner, Becky spotted something in the corner of her eye and stopped to stare at it. A little rat was scurrying along in the shadows. As it scampered past her and disappeared into a vent, Becky could have sworn that she saw a neat little incision cut into its side.

The sight of Rivet City looming over the dock, flashes of multicolored lightning from the flight deck throwing it's silhouette into stark relief, was an oddly reassuring one to Sunset. She had only been away for a day, but seeing it again after everything that had happened made her feel just a little bit better.

It was crazy really, especially after the incident with Sister and the slaver, but Rivet City felt safe in a way that nowhere else in the wasteland did.

The security team played a big part in that. As friendly as they were, they took their job seriously. Indeed, after the incident with Sister, Chief Harkness had managed to get funding to hire even more security officers, on top of what had already been granted to help with protecting the water caravans from Project Purity. The recruitment process was slow, mainly because Harkness refused to hire anyone who wasn't committed to the high standards that he set, but that was hardly a bad thing.

Another part of what made Sunset feel safe in the city, and it was a big part, was how easily she had managed to fit in. She wasn't a pawn in someone else's game, she was just another person with a job to do. Some of the residents seemed to dislike her, but they were very much in the minority. Regular physical training with a magnificent specimen of a man certainly didn't hurt matters, either.

Before she could get to either training or working, however, Sunset had something else to attend to.

After crossing the bridge and greeting the guards at the entrance, Sunset headed upstairs to the Upper Deck. She hadn't spent that much time in this section of the ship; there were a couple of magical oddities up there that had needed seeing to, but usually she just passed through on her way to and from the gym in the tower. Even so, the directions that Rainbow had given her helped Sunset to find her destination easily enough.

The Weatherly Hotel. It was the only hotel in Rivet City, possibly the only hotel in the Capital Wasteland, and the rates it charged on the larger rooms ensured that only those with considerable savings or consistent income could stay there permanently. According to Rainbow, the couple she was about to meet has both.

The room Sunset was looking for was near the end of a corridor all on its own. Just as she raised her hand to knock, Sunset hesitated. She might well be overstepping her mark by doing this; upsetting a pair of complete strangers for no good reason, but something told her that this had to be done.

Forcing her apprehension to the back of her mind, Sunset knocked curtly on the door.

"Just a minute!" A voice called out. Sunset waited impatiently until finally the door opened, and a middle-aged woman with wavy shoulder-length blonde hair looked out. Her eyes almost popped out of her head when she spotted who was at the door. "Oh my goodness, you're Sunset Shimmer, aren't you?"

"Are you Mrs Holiday?" Sunset asked.

"Please, call me Jackie," Jackie replied. "What can I do for you?"

Sunset rubbed her neck awkwardly. “Actually, I kinda needed to talk to you about something… sensitive. Do you mind if I come in?"

"Oh, of course." Jackie stepped aside and held the door open for Sunset, with a slightly befuddled expression on her face. "Holly? We have a guest," she said as she closed the door behind Sunset.

The hotel room was surprisingly big, easily three times the size of Sister's cramped quarters. A double bed with an elegantly carved wooden headboard lay against one wall, while the others were lined with cupboards, a desk, and several black and white photographs of various people.

Another woman was sitting on a couch opposite the bed, reading an ancient magazine. She had short brown hair, and was wearing a thick knitted sweater, though Sunset had to wonder where the heck she had gotten the wool from.

Holly looked up curiously as Sunset entered the room. When she saw who had arrived, she dropped the magazine on a nearby desk and made to stand up. "Miss Shimmer? To what do we owe this pleasure?"

"Please, you don't have to get up." Sunset bit her lip and added, "Actually, it's probably best if we all sit for this."

Jackie shared a worried look with her partner as she joined her on the couch. "What's this about?"

Sunset glanced around for somewhere to sit. When no other options presented themselves, she gave up and sat on the end of the bed. This was it. She couldn't run away now. Taking a deep breath, Sunset steeled herself and said, "Okay, I can't think of any good way to ask this, so I'm just going to do it. Do you know a girl named Madeleine?"

Both women deflated, their expressions crumpling as if their world was ending. "W-we did," Jackie said quietly. "She was our niece, but she and her parents passed away a long time ago. How did you know about her?"

"I, er, heard something about it," Sunset deflected. "If it's not too much to ask, would you mind telling me what happened?"

Jackie sighed and shook her head. "My brother and his wife used to be researchers, studying the wildlife of the wastes to find better ways of dealing with them. About six years ago, we got word from a caravan that a deathclaw had gotten to them on their way back from an expedition." She sniffed and rubbed her nose, smiling sadly as Holly squeezed her hands. "We've been planning on going to visit their graves, but it's right on the other side of the wastes, and neither of us have left this city since we were children."

"Their graves?" Sunset frowned. According to Maddie, no-one had been willing to take her in, but if that were true, then who had cared enough to dig graves for her parents? And why not bring Maddie herself to her aunts? Something wasn't adding up. "Did they have friends with them when… when it happened?"

Jackie shook her head. "No, it was just them. The caravan guard who brought us the news dug the graves for them."

"That was nice of him, he didn't have to do that," Holly put in, her voice quavering. "But he said that he couldn't just leave the three of them laying there like… like that."

Now Sunset knew that something was up. Maddie herself had said that her parents were killed by deathclaws, so that part was likely true, and Jackie and Holly didn't seem like they were lying, but Sunset couldn't understand why the caravan guard would have lied about burying all three of them when Maddie was clearly still alive. "Where is the caravan guard now? Does he still come here regularly?"

"Oh, no, he hasn't been around here for quite some time, I think it's been just over two years," Holly replied. "Devan is his name. We've been friends with him since we were children, but he preferred going out into the wasteland to just staying put." She gestured vaguely at a wall. "Try asking Sister, he works down in the lower deck. Apparently the two used to travel together."

Sunset felt a brick drop in her stomach at the mention of Sister. If this Devan person used to travel with Sister, then he was almost certainly a slaver. That explained why he had told Jackie and Holly that Maddie was dead; he must have tried to enslave her, but she escaped and fled into the wastes where she ended up falling in with a raider gang.

Sunset sighed and ran a hand through her hair. It was time to come clean. "Maddie is alive." The look of blank shock on Jackie and Holly's faces somehow made Sunset feel even more apprehensive. "Me and my friends found her in the metro tunnels beneath the D.C. ruins, alive. She said she didn't have anyone to take her in so we sent her to the Brotherhood of Steel. She's at the Citadel right now, training to become a Knight."

A stunned silence took over, broken only by the faint groan of settling metal from deep within the ship.

"You… you're not lying, are you?" Jackie asked tentatively. Sunset shook her head. Jackie breathed in deeply through her nose, evidently holding back tears, then buried her face in her hands and started quietly sobbing.

Holly quickly threw her arms around her partner and gave Sunset a bewildered look. "But… why didn't she come and find us? We would have taken her in without question!"

"I don't know," Sunset admitted. "Truth be told, she doesn't actually know that I've come to see you. She might even be angry when she finds out what I've done, but I had to try and find what family she had left."

Holly nodded, still looking dazed. "Of course. I… can we see her?"

"I'll ask her," Sunset replied, though she added quickly, "I don't want to get your hopes up too much, though. I hate to say this, but she might not want to… well…"

"She might not want to see us after all this time," Holly finished sadly.

Sunset wished that there was something she could say, or do, but nothing came to mind. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up painful memories again-"

"Don't be ridiculous," Jackie said, looking up again. Her face was a tear-streaked mess, but her face was hopeful. "You've told us that our niece is safe, that she's alive and well instead of dead in a-" Jackie swallowed hard and shook her head. "Don't apologize. She is alright, isn't she?"

Sunset smiled. "She has a bit of an attitude, but I can't really blame her for that. Aside from that, she's fine. She's fitting in well with the Brotherhood."

Jackie nodded. "That's good. Just… tell her that we're here if she needs us. No matter what she says, she'll always be our little niece."

"Not so little anymore," Holly said with a wry smile. "She must be around fifteen by now."

Jackie sniffed and laughed wetly. "Don't be silly, I'll always remember her as that adorable little bundle we looked after when she was newborn. I'll cherish that memory til the day I die."

Sunset felt something in her heart wrench at those words. "Yeah… memories are important," she said quietly. Blinking back tears of her own, though she wasn't certain where they were coming from, Sunset stood up. "I'd best get out of your hair. I'll talk to Maddie tonight when I get back to the Citadel, then I'll find you when I come back here tomorrow, is that okay?"

"It's more than okay," Holly replied with a sad smile. She stood up as well, Jackie following suit, and the two women bowed their heads. "Thank you, Miss Shimmer."

Sunset was taken aback by their sudden formality. "I… uh… don't mention it. I'll see you tomorrow."

Something niggled at the back of Sunset's mind as Jackie and Holly saw her out of the room. She wracked her brain as she strode through the corridors of Rivet City, but it wasn't until she reached the gym in the tower that she realized what was bothering her. Suddenly apprehensive again, Sunset pushed the door open with a feeling of dread nestling in her gut.

Chief Harkness was waiting inside. He had already changed into his training clothes and was currently doing some light warm ups on the mats.

"I wasn't sure whether or not you'd be coming today," Harkness said as Sunset stepped inside. "I heard about the battle at the Citadel yesterday, are you alright?"

Had it really only been yesterday? Sunset wondered. The conversation with Maddie's aunts felt like it had taken an eternity, even though it had probably been less than ten minutes. "I'm fine," Sunset replied slowly.

Harkness raised an eyebrow, then stepped off the mats and leaned against a table, patting the spot next to him. "No you're not. Come on, let's hear it." Sunset hesitated for a second, then relented and trudged over to sit on the table where he'd indicated. "Alright, Sunset, what's wrong? Your friends weren't injured, were they?"

"No, no, they're fine," Sunset replied quickly. "Applejack is a bit battered, but I think her pride is hurt more than anything. I'm just… this isn't anything to do with the fight."

"Okay…" Harkness looked at her curiously. "Is it something that you want to talk about?"

Sunset sighed and ran a hand through her hair. She had already pushed her luck once today, but this was something that she had to get off her chest. "I have this… friend. They lost their memories a long time ago. Well, it's more like they deliberately had them suppressed."

"I didn't even know that was possible," Harkness said flatly. "Is this a magic thing?"

"No, it's some advanced technology from this world," Sunset replied. "I learned recently that I can give them their memories back, but I don't know if I should."

"Why did they remove their memories in the first place?" Harkness asked.

Sunset shook her head. "It was to protect themselves, and the people they cared about, from someone who was trying to hurt them. They're safe now, I actually managed to convince the person looking for them that they were dead, and that person left the wasteland to go back to wherever he came from, but I don't know what I should do for my friend."

"Do they remember the fact that they've suppressed their memories?" Harkness pressed.

"No," Sunset replied.

Harkness hummed thoughtfully. "That's a tricky one. I'm assuming you haven't spoken to them about it?" Sunset shook her head, unable to meet his eyes. "In that case, I'm really not sure. Are they happy as they are now?"

Sunset looked up at him. "I think so. They certainly seem to be, but, memories are important. Even the bad ones."

"I get the feeling that you have some sort of hangup over this." Harkness let out a humourless laugh. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised, with magic like yours, but this isn't about you. I don't mean to be harsh, but it wouldn't be fair to potentially make someone's life a misery just to make yourself feel better."

Sunset sighed heavily. "Yeah, you're right. It's just, back home we met someone who stole my friends memories of me. It was awful. That's why when I heard about y- about this person messing around with their own memory, it… it got to me." She sighed again and raised her arms above her head as she stretched. "Anyway, I'd better go and get changed. Time to take out my frustrations by giving you a good pounding."

Harkness raised an eyebrow. "I think you'll find that you'll be the one on your hands and knees after our first round."

Sunset blushed, but said coyly, "Either way, this'll end with you on your back." She stood and headed for the foldable screens at the back of the room, decidedly not swaying her hips any more than usual as she walked.

Harkness was right; Sunset didn't have a right to force him to remember his past, nor to reveal the fact that he was really a synth. He was happy and, with Zimmer gone, safe, and that was all that mattered.

The training session that followed certainly helped to keep Sunset from worrying. If she had expected Harkness to go easier on her after what had happened at the Citadel, she was sorely mistaken; he was just as relentless as ever. Sunset put up a good showing, but no matter how much she had improved it still wasn't enough to take him down.

Finally, after an hour of alternating between sparring and practicing techniques, Harkness called time. Sunset shambled off the mat like a zombie and collapsed against the table.

"We'll just do some gentle exercises and stretching tomorrow, to let your muscles heal," Harkness said as he sat next to her. "That means no charging around an assault course with the Brotherhood as well, alright?"

Sunset gave him a half-hearted salute. "Sure thing, Chief." She smirked at his exasperated sigh and grabbed herself a water bottle. The taste of ice cold water after a hard workout was something she had never truly appreciated before.

"I'd want to know." Sunset lowered her bottle and looked at Harkness curiously. "I've been thinking about what you said, and you're right," Harkness explained. "I've never really thought about it before, but memories are important, even the bad ones. I can't say the same for whoever you're talking about but, if it was me, I'd want to know."

Sunset looked at him in surprise. "Really? I mean, they did it to protect themselves."

"And you said the danger has passed," Harkness countered. "I think we can trust your judgement in that regard. And if the danger does come back, whatever it is, I know you well enough to know that you'll do everything in your power to protect whoever is in trouble." He shrugged and reached for a towel. "Whatever the right decision is, I think we can trust you enough to make it."

Something caught in Sunset's throat. She hadn't expected Harkness to suddenly change his mind, nor did she realize that he thought that highly of her. "And if it was you, you'd want to know?"

Harkness nodded. "I'd want to know who I really was. Why don't you try doing something like this? Just ask them about memories like you did with me?"

"Right." Sunset bit her lip. "Are… are you positive that you'd want to know?"

"I just said so, didn't I?" Harkness looked at her suspiciously. "Why are you so fixated on my opinion? You almost make it sound like…"

Sunset saw comprehension slowly dawning in his eyes. Taking a deep breath, she prepared herself to take another leap. "Activate A3-21 Recall Code Violet."

Harkness winced and hissed as if he was in pain, then his expression shifted to be replaced with a look of blank horror. "My God, I remember… I remember it all. The Commonwealth… the Institute… all… all the runners I brought down… my God." He pushed off the table and walked into the middle of the room, one hand on his head as if he was trying to hold his own thoughts in place. "My whole life has been a lie."

"It hasn't been a lie," Sunset insisted, quickly stepping up next to him and placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder. She took it as a good sign that he didn't throw it off. "None of your life has been a lie. Some of it has just been… lost in the dark for a while."

"What about my memories of my childhood, my family?" Harkness spat. "None of it's real. It's all just a fabrication, a figment of Pinkerton's imagination. Jesus, I'm not even human."

"Neither am I," Sunset admitted without thinking. In response to Harkness' surprised look, she waved a hand dismissively. "I was born as something else in Equestria, but the point is that it doesn't matter how you were born or what you came into this world as. Hell, you're a better person, a better man, than almost anyone else I've met in this world."

Harkness sighed and slumped his shoulders. "Look, I understand what you're trying to do, and I appreciate it, I really do, but… I just want some time alone. I've got a lot to think about."

Sunset couldn't say a word as Harkness pulled away from her and trudged to the door. The sound of the door clanging shut behind him sounded like the death knell for whatever small thing had been growing between them.

Twilight idly swung her legs as she sat patiently on the edge of the bed. She was currently in one of the rooms just off the Citadel's infirmary, waiting for a medic to help her with her physiotherapy. Her wheelchair was sitting in the corner; a trainee had helped her out of it before disappearing to tend to the wounded from the previous day's battle.

The sound of the door opening made Twilight look up, but she was surprised to see Applejack enter the room rather than a medic.

"Hey, how are you doing?" Applejack asked.

"I'm alright, thanks, just waiting to start my physio," Twilight replied. "Are you making progress with the gate?"

Applejack nodded and dropped into Twilight's wheelchair. "Ah managed to straighten it out enough to use, all that's left is to fix the wall so we can reinstall it properly. Ah offered to help, but for some reason they kept tellin' me to take a break and get some rest, so in the end Ah figured Ah may as well take them up on the offer."

"You should probably get as much rest as you can," Twilight told her. "Somehow I get the feeling we're going to be heading back out into the wastes ourselves at some point."

"Ah should be out there right now with the others," Applejack grumbled.

"There's not much we can do about it, the Brotherhood needs you here," Twilight replied fairly. "Besides, Rarity can handle herself, and I doubt anything is going to be able to get the drop on Pinkie or Fluttershy. The only one of us who's better suited to handling the wasteland is Rainbow Dash, and you know as well as I do that that girl is as likely to get into trouble as out of it."

Applejack huffed and crossed her arms. "Yeah, Ah guess. Ah just hate sittin' around here doing nothing. Ah know how to handle myself, Ah ain't weak."

Twilight watched Applejack seething in the corner, and pondered how to go about cheering her up. It was as plain as day to see what was bothering the farm girl, but addressing it without upsetting or offending her wasn't going to be easy. "No-one thinks you're weak, Applejack, we j-"

"Well, why the heck am Ah gettin' benched, then?" Applejack interrupted.

"You're not getting benched," Twilight said patiently. "You're literally the only person that could help the Knights fix the gate, no one else has that kind of power."

"Yeah, right," Applejack growled. "The Brotherhood has power armor, they would've managed to straighten the gate out themselves, eventually. Ah should be out there, usin' my magic to protect Rarity and the others, but now everyone thinks Ah'm weak after Ah got beaten by that big darn freak from Tartarus!"

There was the crux of the matter, just as Twilight had suspected. Getting defeated by Horrigan had bruised Applejack's ego and shaken her confidence, not to mention whatever additional psychological trauma she was hiding from almost getting squashed like a bug. Seeing no easy way out of this, Twilight decided it was best to just rip the band aid off and get it over with. "Applejack, none of us think you're weak for losing to Horrigan. Do you?"

Applejack's expression told her that she had hit the bullseye. "Wha-? Don't be ridiculous, Ah ain't weak! Ah mean, sure, maybe Ah ain't as strong as Ah thought Ah was, but… yeah, Ah ain't weak. Maybe. Probably not. Ah mean Ah might be, Ah guess, maybe a little."

"Applejack, you walloped Horrigan from one end of the Citadel to the other. The only reason it didn't kill him is because he's an absolute monster, in every sense of the word." If Twilight could move her arms properly, she would have waggled a finger at her friend. As it was, she settled for blowing a lock of hair out of her face. "Hell, all of the Knights are impressed that you lasted as long as they did. You can count the number of people who have fought against Horrigan and won on one hand, and no one else in history has ever punched him in the face and walked away from it. It took Liberty Prime to finally put that thing down. You know, the literal walking superweapon armed with actual nuclear ordnance. Do you really think you're weak because you can't quite hit as hard as a nuclear bombardment?"

Twilight saw clearly that her words were hitting home. Applejack shifted uncomfortably, looking anywhere but at her friend, but after a few moments she begrudgingly admitted, "Ah guess not. Ah just don't want anyone thinkin' that Ah ain't good for nothin' after that."

"I promise you, none of us think that you're good for nothing," Twilight replied honestly. She suspected that it was going to take quite some time for Applejack to properly pick herself up from her defeat, and even longer before she managed to shrug it off entirely, but at least they had made a start.

Before either of them could say anything else, the door opened and a medic stepped through, calling back over his shoulder, "Don't forget to tell Elder Lyons the news about our civilian patient, alright?"

Twilight instantly sat up straighter, ignoring the flash of pain from her back. "Civilian patient? Do you mean Adam? What's happened, is he alright?"

The medic held up his hands placatingly. "He's fine, don't worry. I'm just reminding my colleague to keep the Elder informed of any progress. Right now I'm more interested in you. Do you remember the exercises we went through last time?"

Fluttershy felt a vague sense of relief as she stepped into the Meresti Trainyard. After the skirmish with the Enclave, raiders and giant ants, the rest of the journey had been thankfully uneventful, but all of the excitement had fired Fluttershy's bloodlust, and she was having increasing difficulty keeping her eyes off of Rarity and Pinkie's necks. Just their smell and the sound of their heartbeats was enough to drive her to distraction.

"Are you alright, darling?" Rarity asked.

Fluttershy shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose. "I need blood. Soon." Without waiting to see if Rarity and Pinkie were following, she strode to the tunnel entrance and headed inside.

The metro tunnel was just as dismal and decrepit as the last time the Rainbooms passed through. Even the foul stench of the mirelurks they had dealt with previously still pervaded the air. Keeping an eye out for any booby traps, Fluttershy carefully picked her way along the tunnel. As she passed out of range of what little sunlight filtered in through the great metal doors at the end, she was brought to a halt by Rarity calling out to her, "Fluttershy, put your Pip-Boy light on before you hurt yourself!"

Fluttershy glanced back over her shoulder; Pinkie and Rarity were both hurriedly switching their own lights on and illuminating the area around them. "What do you mean?"

Rarity gaped at Fluttershy as if she had gone mad. "What do I mean? What do you mean, darling?! It's pitch black!"

"Huh?" Fluttershy looked around, momentarily distracted from her hunger. Away from the light, the world presented itself in an array of washed-out grays; colorless, and yet defined with crystal clarity. "Huh. I can see in the dark. That's new."

"That's incredible!" Rarity carefully hurried up next to her. "What does everything look like? Can you still see colors?"

"Everything is gray," Fluttershy replied curtly. The reek of rotting mirelurk covered any hint of the scent of Rarity's blood, but the rhythmic thumping of her heart was becoming more and more enticing to Fluttershy in a way that did not bode well for the fashionista's health. "I'll describe everything to you later, but can we please just find the Family first before I turn feral again?"

Rarity took a step back, chuckling nervously. "R-right. Sorry, Fluttershy, I keep forgetting how hard this must be for you. I'll stay focused from now on."

Fluttershy sighed and carried on ahead. The girls found avoiding the booby traps a lot easier this time around; Fluttershy's newly discovered impeccable night vision enabling her to easily spot the traps before they got anywhere near them.

As the group neared the final approach to the Family's hideout, squeezing past the abandoned metro cars that dotted the tunnel, Fluttershy hung back and let Pinkie go in front. The last thing she wanted to do was startle their sentry by suddenly appearing out of the darkness. That would be a good way to get accidentally shot.

When they stepped around the last subway car, carefully avoiding the last tripwire, a harsh voice shouted out, "Stop right there! Who the hell are you?"

"Take it easy, Robert, it's just your friendly neighborhood Rainbooms, again," Pinkie called in reply.

"Who? Oh, it's you lot." Fluttershy looked around Pinkie to see the Family's lookout, Robert, standing behind his sandbag wall flanked, as always, by two large metal drums, each with a fire merrily burning away inside. "I never thought I'd see you girls again. What are you doing here?"

"We need to speak to Vance," Rarity told him. "It's a matter of some urgency," she added with a glance at Fluttershy.

Robert shrugged. "Fine by me, we owe you girls for helping get the blood packs we need." We waved them past. "Go on, you know where to find him."

After thanking Robert, the trio hurried into the corridor that led to the Meresti Metro Station. Fluttershy found herself strangely reluctant to continue, now that she was so close. The Family was a gathering of cannibals from around the wasteland; people who controlled their cannibalistic urges by only consuming blood rather than flesh.

Fluttershy wasn't remotely afraid of them; they had been far too nice the last time she had met them, but she could already smell the blood packs that they kept ready for consumption. Her control felt like it was balancing on a knife-edge as it was.

Soon enough, the girls emerged into the makeshift settlement of Meresti Station. The area was fairly loud, with a loud hubbub of conversation suffusing the air. About a dozen people were gathered around a wooden stall. Fluttershy recognised one of them as Vance, the leader of the Family, from his distinctive trench coat as well as the Shishkebab he kept scabbarded at his waist. One of the group spotted the girls and said something to the others, who all turned to look as the trio approached.

Vance's eyes widened when he saw them. "Girls, this is a surprise, though not an unwelcome one. Indeed, your timing is most fortuitous."

Rarity, Pinkie and Vance quickly slipped into conversation, but Fluttershy wasn't paying any attention. One of the group was clutching a blood pack, opening the nozzle as if she was about to drink from it.

The scent of blood so close washed away the last of Fluttershy's restraint.

Fluttershy felt her magic rippling through her body, felt talons and fangs lengthen as wings unfurled from her back. With a feral snarl, she launched herself at the hapless woman and snatched the blood pack from her hands before sinking her fangs into it.

The blood felt like a balm as it flowed down her throat. It numbed her mind and soothed the awful itching that the blood hunger caused for just a brief moment, until the pack was empty.

Looking around for more blood, the people scrambling back away from her tickled Fluttershy's predatory instincts, but the sight of a half-open mini fridge, fully stocked with blood packs, quickly snagged her focus. Vaulting over a wooden counter in the way, Fluttershy growled and snarled to scare off any fools that wanted to challenge her for her prize. Seeing that none dared get between her and her prey, Fluttershy gave a victorious hiss and set to gorging herself, draining the blood packs one after one in quick succession.

Unfortunately, the blood ran out before Fluttershy was truly sated, but by the time it was gone she had at least regained enough of her faculties to hold off from going on a frenzied rampage. Straightening up, Fluttershy flicked her hair and looked around to see where her friends had gotten to.

Rarity and Pinkie were standing exactly where Fluttershy had left them, both looking as if they were about to dive for cover. Vance was standing next to them, an expression of slack-jawed amazement on his face. "I assume this is what you wanted to talk to me about?" He said slowly.

"Er, yes," Rarity giggled nervously. "Fluttershy has been having difficulty controlling her, well, hunger for blood in stressful circumstances. We were hoping that you might be able to help."

"More blood would be nice, too," Fluttershy said bluntly.

"Of course." Vance called for some of his subordinates to bring more blood, then gestured for the girls to follow him. "Come, walk with me."

Fluttershy fell into step alongside Vance as he walked to the escalators and headed up to the mezzanine, Rarity and Pinkie following in their wake.

"How long have you had this issue, Miss Fluttershy?" Vance asked.

"Not long," Fluttershy replied. "Around a week and a half, I think. That's when I first ended up like… this." She flexed her wings for emphasis.

"I see." When they reached the mezzanine, Vance leaned against the wall and looked at her, running his eyes particularly over her wings and fangs. "Have you had trouble controlling your hunger at all times, or only when stressed?"

Fluttershy shook her head. "After the first, um, frenzy, I managed to keep the hunger under control quite easily. I needed to have more blood after about a week, but a single pack was enough, unless I use a lot of my magic, then I need more." She frowned and leaned against the wall, too. "The problem is that there was a battle at the Citadel, where we're staying for the time being. I didn't fight, but something about the excitement and the smell made it hard to control the itch."

"Which is when you thought of us?" Vance asked. Fluttershy nodded. "Understandable. Before I can help you, however, I would like some more details, if that's alright. How did you become like this?"

Between the three of them, the girls explained everything, from Fluttershy's initial exposure to FEV in Vault 87, to her escape from the raiders that kidnapped her, her mutation and resultant frenzy, right the way up to the fight against Horrigan and their trek to meet the Family. Vance listened carefully, asking pertinent questions whenever they came to him but mostly allowing the girls to do the talking. He was surprised and a little shocked that FEV was the cause of Fluttershy's condition, but he accepted it easily enough.

"I had heard from Arefu about the magical abilities you girls possess, but for it to manifest in such a way when mixed with FEV is truly incredible," Vance said when they were finished. "Incidentally, it's a good thing you girls were able to facilitate our alliance with the people of Arefu. If we didn't have their help in acquiring blood packs, then your little feast back there would have been a considerable blow to our supplies."

"Oh, um, I'm sorry," Fluttershy said quietly.

Vance shook his head. "Do not apologize, I understand all too well how difficult it can be to control one's inner darkness."

Fluttershy let out a soft sigh of relief. "Do you think you can help me control the hunger?"

"I do, but…" Vance tilted his head as he watched her. "I notice you keep referring to it as the hunger, not your hunger, is there a reason why?"

Fluttershy stared at him in mild confusion. "Well, I mean, it's not me, is it? It's all because of the FEV."

Vance gave her a piercing look. "My child, I don't mean to be cruel, but while the FEV may have been the initial catalyst, I assure you that it was you who did those things."

A lead weight dropped into Fluttershy's stomach at his words.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Rarity hissed. "We want you to help her, not torture her!"

"I want to help, and I will, but to do so I first need Fluttershy to accept who she is," Vance replied. "I'm not saying that you are to blame for what happened, I merely want you to understand that it was not some dark hand at work, some mystical force dictating your actions. The FEV, and your mutation, are a part of you, now. You are two sides of the same coin. Light and dark, good and bad, beautiful and ugly, all many parts of the singular entity that is you." Vance shook his head. "If you cannot come to accept that, then I'm afraid that there is little I can do to help."

Fluttershy felt as if the walls were closing in on her. She wanted to say that he was wrong, that the FEV was a parasite that had infected her mind; it wouldn't even be a lie, but Vance's words had the ring of truth about them.

Seeing her hesitation, Vance pushed off from the wall and started towards a nearby corridor. "Come with me."

The girls shared a concerned glance before following him. Vance led them through the old metro station until they came to a door marked 'Restroom', with a computer terminal just outside. "This is where we bring all new members of the Family," Vance told them. "Here, they meditate in solitude, deciding whether they wish to stay and learn our ways, or leave and give society a second chance." He used the terminal to unlock the door then held it open for Fluttershy. "If you believe that you can come to terms with the darkness inside you, then enter and begin your meditation. If not, the Family will provide as much blood as we can spare, and I will give you whatever advice I can, though I do not know how much it will help. The choice is yours."

Fluttershy looked back at Pinkie and Rarity, but they were both as lost for words as she was. As she wrestled with her doubts, she saw Pinkie glance into the room and, ever so subtly, nod. "You can do this, Shy."

"Pinkie?" Rarity asked warily.

Fluttershy looked Pinkie in the eye, seeing a dark reflection there. Pinkie had already faced her demons, standing at the top of a precipice back at River City. If her friend had the courage to stand on the edge of despair and stare into the abyss, then Fluttershy would dare to try, too.

With her decision made, Fluttershy turned and stepped inside the room without another word. She had been keeping herself busy ever since she had mutated, throwing herself into studying medicine and FEV, all to avoid thinking about the horrible things she had done while using her mutation as a shield to avoid dealing with the horror and guilt of it. It was time for that to change.

"You're making the right decision," Vance said, pride evident in his voice. "It will be painful, but if you can face your darkness; if you can accept it and allow it to be a part of you, then I can help you to control it. I shall be back in a few hours. Good luck."

Fluttershy flinched as the door slammed shut behind her and locked automatically. A solitary chair was placed next to a little table in the middle of the room. Sitting down, Fluttershy flexed her claws and, for the first time in a while, allowed herself to think about Adam.

Apologies for the slight delay in the update, had a mild issue with writing implements.