Night fell quickly on the city of Canterlot. As the servants of the Wings estate gradually turned in for the night, the lights began to flicker off one by one. However, the light to the first floor workshop remained on, shining like a beacon on the hill. Just past midnight, the owner of the house decided to do a little investigating.

Ebony Wings pushed open the door to the workshop, peering in although she could already smell and taste who was inside. Ivory Wings sat at her workbench, a screwdriver in one hand and a small, bladed device in the other. A laptop was open on the table, while a pitcher of pink lemonade and several glass tumblers occupied the rest of the space.

“What are you doing?” Ebony asked, scratching at her messy black hair. “It’s past midnight.”

“Oh, hello, sister,” Ivory said, looking up and taking off her headphones. “I was just finishing up on the final touches on my new toy.”

“What toy?” Ebony tried to see. “Something I can use, I hope?”

“I can easily make one for you,” Ivory said, gesturing for her sister to come over as she poured two glasses of pink lemonade. “Whether you can actually use it is another matter altogether.”

“Why won’t I be able to use it?” Ebony gave her long hair a flip. “I’m good at everything.”

“I spent years mastering this kind of thing,” Ivory said pointedly. “I didn’t spend ages in an Assassin Brotherhood for nothing. Even if I did end up betraying them to look for you. Here, drink this.” Ivory passed one of the glasses to Ebony, who immediately recognized the sprig of foxglove that was being used as garnish.

“I hope you’re not going outside to sell this…” Ebony turned the glass around and looked at its contents. “It’s going to kill someone if they’re not like us.”

“That’s what I’m counting on,” Ivory said cheerfully. “It won’t be quick, though. I spent days in the labs getting this juuuust right. Plus, it’s pink! Who can resist a nice glass of pink lemonade?”

“I thought you said you’re leaving as much killing as you can behind?” Ebony eyed her sister and raised an eyebrow. “And this isn’t even a kill I’m ordering. What’s the occasion?”

“Nobody you know. I happen to need their help with repairing the sirens’ pendants, and I need this lemonade to secure their help. Go on, drink up and tell me how it tastes.”

“You’re… going to kill them, because you need their help…?” Ebony held the glass in her hands. She was quite confused at what her sister was planning.

Ivory shook her head, taking the small bladed implement and securing it to her lower arm with leather straps. “No, no. You see, I’m not entirely sure they’ll give me the help willingly, so I’m going to use the lemonade to make sure they do. I’ve already prepared an antidote for it, so there’ll be no harm done. Get it?”

“Ah, I see, I see…” Ebony downed the rest of the drink. “Efficient as always, I’m guessing, hm, Thyra?”

“Yes indeed,” Ivory said smugly before turning her attention back to the laptop screen. “Oh, we’re getting to a good part now.”

“What’s that you got there?” Ebony walked around her sister to see the laptop. “More plans?”

“Nah, Neightflix. I’m watching Joan Wick. I’m learning a lot from just watching the characters fight.”

“I wasn’t in that movie.” Ebony bent down to get a better look. A character on screen had twisted the gun out of another’s hands, shooting two men before shooting the owner. “I heard it won many awards and I know Bullet Stopper. She’s good at the action and all, but her voice line delivery really needs a lot of work.”

“She’s all right in this one,” Ivory said. “Now in the unlikely scenario that we get caught in a gunfight, I know a few more tricks.” She fiddled with a spring on her wrist device, carefully pushing a collapsible segment into its housing.

“So what happened to peaceful living?” Ebony asked with a smile. “Has that gone out the window?”

Ivory Wings flicked her wrist out, and a six inch long blade extended from the device on her arm with a snick.

“Better to be a warrior in a garden, than a gardener in a war.”

“Meh, whatever you want to say, sister.” Ebony straightened up and arranged her hair. “I think I’m going to go get my beauty rest now. You can stay up all night if you want, but it's bad for your skin.”

“You didn’t even tell me how the lemonade tasted,” Ivory said with a frown. “And you can sleep later. I’ve got more to talk about than just the hidden blade. You still want one?”

Ebony, as usual, ignored just about everything her sister had said and set the empty glass down. “What else do you have to talk about?”

“Well, now would be as good a time as any to talk about the girls you have in your care. Your daughter especially. She has a big school event coming up soon. Are you going to attend?”

“I’m busy, remember?” Ebony fiddled with her hands. “I’m an acclaimed actress. I have things to do. Besides. She’s not even competing.”

“It would mean a lot to her if you would show up to support her school,” Ivory wheedled. “Have a little school spirit, sister. I’m going if I have time.”

“Me? Support that school?” Ebony scoffed. “I think you have the wrong person, Ivory. Sending my daughter there is one thing. Supporting the establishment? Ha!”

Ivory sighed. “Normally I’d ask if you remembered your own school days, but neither of us went to school. I don’t suppose I can persuade you with a rather nice bag of plums?”

“A bag of what?” Ebony said quizzically.

“Plums. You know, they’re a type of purple fruit.”

“I know what plums are!” Ebony snapped. “What I want to know is why you think that would persuade me?”

“I don’t know,” Ivory replied with a shrug. “I saw it on the internet once.”

“Well, plums aren’t going to persuade me.” Ebony wiped a hand across her face and groaned. “Are we done? I really need my sleep.”

“We only sleep four hours and you know it, Your Highness,” Ivory rebutted. “Anyway, I have concerns that we can’t talk about in the light of day. First up, I think we need to monitor your daughter’s contact with her prey. I suspect she’s getting more attached than is proper.”

“Is she now?” Ebony sighed and pulled up a chair. “What makes you say that?”

“She texts him when not in costume, hay, she texts him every night,” Ivory said, turning back to her movie, where the main character was aiming a sniper rifle at someone far away. “And I can smell her excitement about her prey even when she’s Silver Rose.”

“Well you can’t expect her to only text him when she’s in character,” Ebony said defensively. “You expect her to change personas just to message people?”

“No, but I expect her to be able to curb her desires and do this professionally.”

“Well, she’s getting him to like her, yes?” Ebony watched the laptop screen as Joan Wick fired the sniper rifle, hitting a young man wearing headphones, in the neck, killing him. “That’s certainly what I would do if I were in her shoes. Texting is a good way of communication and learning more about someone- wait, something feels weird. Normally I’m the one that has to listen to you lecture me. What’s going on right now?”

“I don’t know,” Ivory said tetchily. “But it’s nice to know that you care almost as much as I do. I’ve noticed some mildly unsettling changes in the sirens as well, if you’d hear them.”

“What? What’s going on with the sirens? They seem the same for me?”

Ivory shook her head and drank half her lemonade in one gulp. “Adagio’s confidence is shot, in case you didn’t notice. Poor girl’s not half the leader she was back in old Canterlot, not to mention I noticed a disturbing interest in that Home Run boy too. And while I admit that Aria and Sonata never really got on with each other, they’ve never been as vitriolic as they are now. I’m hoping that once I get the gems fixed, these problems will go away, but I can make no promises.” She punctuated this statement by firing her phantom blade at a target on the wall, where it hit dead center.

“Hmm…” Ebony put a hand to her chin. “Can’t say I haven’t heard Sonata and Aria arguing. And hey, you’re paying for that.”

“It’s a dartboard,” Ivory said coolly. “It’s meant to be shot at with darts.”

“Not with something that big!” Ebony motioned at her other boards. “And look, all the other ones are in pristine condition, just the way I like them.”

“What’s the point of having a dartboard if you’re not going to use it?” Ivory said with a sniff. “And at least I didn’t use a gun, right?”

“Hey, I like my decor. I think I’m rather good at deciding too.” The actress folded her arms. “Anyway, was that it? It doesn’t seem like much that you’re keeping me down here.”

“Well, there is one more thing, but it’s not terribly urgent. I need you to rent one of the gazebos in Canterlot Central Park for me later.”

“You have to rent those things? I thought they were free. I use them when I want to when I’m at the park.”

“I need it to be private,” Ivory said as she turned back to her laptop. Faint sounds of nightclub music could be heard. “I can’t risk anyone walking in and disturbing my picnic with my guests.”

Ebony Wings scratched her head. “I suppose I could always pay the gardeners to rope off an area if you want… wait. Is this the same thing you want to use the lemonade on?”

“Very perceptive of you, sister,” Ivory slipped her headphones back on and went back to tinkering with her hidden blade. “It’s small wonder you’re the queen.”

“Isn’t that right?” Ebony placed a hand on her chest proudly. “Now anyway, if that is all, then I will be going up to bed now.”

“Okay then,” Ivory said, not taking her eyes off the screen. “Sleep well.”

“What’s that movie about anyway?” Ebony asked curiously. “You’re paying more attention to it than to me.”

Ivory did look up this time. “Well, it’s about this woman who goes on a rampage to defeat the Stalliongrad mafia after one of them kills her cat and steals her boat.”

“That sounds stupid.” She didn’t remember such an acclaimed movie to have such a bad plot. They even managed to get Bullet Stopper. “But whatever. People enjoy it anyway. Well, I will be off now, Ivory. We’ll discuss more things another time, hmm?”

“Goodnight, Your Highness.”

“Same to you, sister.”

Tuesday was a relatively hot day, and with spring coming to an end soon, it was only going to get worse. The winds weren’t blowing a whole lot today, which seemed to make things worse, but at least Crystal Prep Academy had very decent air control, whether it was the fans, the air-conditioners, or even the cool crystalline surfaces they called walls.

Sunny Flare sat in Chemistry class, her shoulders already shaking uncontrollably as she kept her eyes on Silver Rose, who was standing by the front, writing something on the whiteboard, as was requested by Mr. Beaker.

The daughter of Ebony Wings had been called up earlier to finish a formula on the whiteboard, giving Sunny the perfect chance to try and fight off her fear of even looking at Silver.

Once again, she could picture the hand around her neck, squeezing, choking her. Sunny began feeling like she couldn’t breathe, even if the hand was only in her imagination, but she had to do it. For the sake of the school and the Friendship Games, she had to face this fear.

Her breathing becoming ragged, Sunny began counting from one to thirty in her mind, trying to chase her fears away. Sweat began beading on her forehead and her vision began to blur, but Sunny held strong, this time resisting the urge to fall away and cower.

You can do this, Sunny. The others depend on you to do this.

“Psst, Sunny, you okay?” Indigo Zap whispered over, noticing her concentrated face. “You don’t look too good.”

“Try-trying my best… Indigo…” she answered back.

By now, she had forgotten what Mr. Beaker was talking about and why Silver Rose was up front, but Sunny began feeling like the hand around her neck was starting to loosen. She was winning.

Then Silver Rose finished, turning to face the class, her eyes locking on Sunny. With a curl of her lips, Silver gave the mulberry haired girl a wink and began making her way back to her seat.

It was all too much for Sunny. The hand around her throat came back, squeezing as hard as ever and Silver’s eyes began glowing a bright purple as the room around Sunny became darker and darker.

“N-No…” Her vision started turning grey and she began clawing for air, unable to breathe.

Before she knew it, Sunny tipped off her chair and fainted. At least she had lost consciousness before hitting the floor.

When Sunny Flare next opened her eyes, she found she was looking up at a white ceiling with a set of fluorescent lights flashing down at her. She closed her eyes again, feeling it pierce through right to her brain; it hurt.

When she was ready, she cracked her eyes open again, looking to the side this time. When her vision became clear, she spotted the medicine cabinet and Nurse Cardiac’s desk, full of her notes and files.

The nurse’s office? Why am I in the nurse’s office? What happened?

Sunny vaguely remembered she was in Chemistry class. The last thing she remembered was Indigo asking her something.

No, that wasn’t it. It was S-S-Silver Rose… Sunny felt the room drop ten degrees, but she shook her head and frowned. No. You can’t give in, Sunny. You can’t.

“Oh, Sunny, you’re awake.” The voice made Sunny tense up and she froze on the spot, her eyes going wide. “Would you like some water?”

She ducked her hand, using her hands to cover her ears and shut her eyes, trembling with fear. Silver sounded so close. She was probably just sitting by the bedside. Sunny didn’t want to turn to find out, but then she remembered she had to do this. She needed to overcome this fear. She remembered what she had promised the other Shadowbolts yesterday.

“S-Silver Rose?” She slowly began turning around, one eye still shut. Pictures of glowing eyes began surfacing in her mind again. Sunny swallowed hard. “Wh-what are you d-doing here?”

“Someone had to take you to the nurse’s office,” Silver replied.

“Was it… was it you?” Sunny eyed the girl’s hands, afraid that they were going to reach out and grab her neck. She started sweating again as she thought about getting choked. “No, I can’t… I can’t fail now…”

“What are you rambling on about?” Nurse Cardiac swooped in with a thermometer. “You need to rest, Miss Flare. I suspect all the stress about the upcoming Friendship Games got to you. Now, let me take your temperature, there’s a good girl.”

“I’m-I’m not afraid. I’m not afraid, I’m not afraid,” Sunny repeated as Nurse Cardiac pulled the thermometer from her ear.

“Your temperature is rather high,” the nurse said, looking at the number on the thermometer. “And what are you saying? There is nothing to be afraid of.”

“I’ll-I’ll be fine, N-Nurse Cardiac.” Sunny wiped her forehead with the back of a hand. “It’s not the Games that are t-troubling me…”

“Mmhm,” the nurse said, returning to her desk and looking for something. “Well, it’s good that your friend here brought you to me after you fainted in class. Sometimes I wonder if Principal Cinch pushes her students too hard…”

Sunny looked at Silver and gulped. There was no way she could keep going like this. She needed to end this as quickly as she could.

“Si-Silver… we need to… t-talk…” she croaked, keeping her hands in front of her just in case.

Silver Rose glanced at Sunny and nodded once. “I agree.”

“I can’t. I can’t be afraid of y-you…” Sunny continued. “I’m s-sorry… I’m sorry I bullied you… a-and for pushing you to try to… to…” The images of Silver’s hand and glowing eyes came back, first, ripping off the cubicle door, then snaking around her neck. Sunny began breathing rapidly again, her fingers clawing at her own neck as she struggled to breathe. “N-No… I can’t.”

Fight it, Sunny. The girl could hear Sugarcoat’s words in her own head. You’re stronger than this. Or maybe not. But focus. You need to be prepared for the Games.

Nurse Cardiac was back, thrusting a mask to Sunny’s face before turning the dial on a portable tank, sending oxygen to the mulberry haired girl’s face.

“You’re having a panic attack. Breathe, Sunny,” she instructed. “Calm down. Deep breaths. Nice and slow.”

Silver Rose stood up, brushing her skirt off. “Well, I should get back to class. I’ll tell Mr. Beaker that you’re not well and won’t be joining us for the rest of it.”

Wait, Silver. Sunny reached a hand out, asking her to wait. She couldn’t pass up the chance yet. She needed to tell herself there was nothing to fear but her own imagination. “S-Silver… wait.”

“No talking yet, Sunny.” Nurse Cardiac tapped on the mask. “Keep breathing for now.”

But I need to apologize and make amends… I need to know I have nothing to be afraid of…

Sunny began taking deeper breaths, feeling her heart rate begin to decrease, almost back to normal now. She needed to talk to Silver. She needed to hear what she needed to hear from the scary girl herself.

“Yes, good. Keep it up.” Nurse Cardiac patted Sunny on the arm. “Just keep breathing like that and you’ll be fine.”

“Silver…” The breathing had helped and Sunny found she could focus a little more now. “We still need to talk. Nurse Cardiac, I’m… I’m afraid of her, that’s why I’m having these attacks. I need t-to talk to her. Could I ha-have the room for a few minutes?”

“Oh, of course.” Nurse Cardiac got up and headed for the door. “But keep that mask on, just in case. Silver Rose, you’re a dependable one. Make sure she’s okay.”

Silver Rose nodded to the nurse as she left. The girl then arranged herself in a chair, pulling it up next to the cot upon which Sunny was sitting. In that moment, the resemblance between Silver and her mother became startlingly clear, as the pose Silver had adopted was the same one Ebony Wings took in many interviews; a casual slouch to one side with one finger positioned at the side of her face while the other hand lay on the armrest.

“Silver, I’m s-sorry,” she started again. “I was selfish. I was afraid you were going to take my place in the Friendship Games, s-so I t-tried to put you i-in your place. I was wrong. If I didn’t pu-push you, you weren’t going to… going to hurt me, right?” She took a few more deep breaths to calm her already jumping nerves. I did it… I said what I needed to say.

Silver Rose closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, seeming to mull it over in her mind. Then she opened her eyes and looked down at Sunny with a genuine smile on her face, not the deranged grin from the locker rooms.

“You really mean it, don’t you?” Silver said quietly.

“Yes, yes.” She nodded. “What I-I did was wrong. I’m the way I am r-right now because of myself. I pro-promise, I won’t bother you again. Just… please don’t strangle me again.”

Silver put a hand on her own chest. “I’m also sorry, Sunny. I want to apologize again for my actions in the locker room. I should’ve controlled my anger better. So I also promise, I won’t try to strangle you again. Friends?” She stuck an arm out to Sunny.

The mulberry haired girl flinched at first, but then realize she didn’t mean any harm by it. “You-you want to be friends…? With me? After what I did?”

Silver Rose smiled widely, showing off an impressively pointed set of canines. “Why not? I mean, if you’re okay with it…”

“I-I’m…” Sunny was unsure of what to say for a while, but this Silver Rose didn’t seem as scary or dangerous as the one she had seen in the girls’ changing room. “I… don’t mind.”

Abruptly, Silver Rose pulled Sunny Flare into a close hug, wrapping her arms around the stunned girl. Sunny was shocked and partially afraid. She had never expected such an intense reaction from Silver like this. She froze, unable to move.

“Thank you,” Silver whispered in Sunny’s ear.

Sunny began uttering small whimpers, but eventually she controlled herself and nodded. “An-anyt-time.”

After a few moments more in the embrace, Silver relinquished Sunny and patted her on the head.

“I suppose I should let you rest now. Will I see you at lunch?”

“Um… sure…” Sunny cracked her mouth open into a smile, still unable to move the rest of her body.

Silver Rose smiled once more at Sunny, then turned to leave the clinic, leaving the door swinging in her wake and a strangely warm feeling in Sunny Flare’s chest.

“I did it… I faced it…” Sunny patted her own shoulder and breathed in deeply into the mask. No more would she be haunted by the visions of glowing purple eyes or the feel of fingers around her throat.

Hopefully.

Out in the hallway, Silver Rose smiled to herself and made a detour to the nearest bathroom. Locking the door, she allowed herself a fanged grin in the mirror, while tilting her head so that the lights put her eyes in shadow. They shone purple in the polished glass.

She had done it. Sunny Flare was hers, and by extension, her position with the Shadowbolts was all but secure.

“This day has been just perfect… The kind of day of which I’ve dreamed since I was small… Hahahaha… hahaha!”