//------------------------------// // The Next Stage // Story: Mages of Etheria: The Infinity Matrix // by Nova Arc //------------------------------// Sunset’s mind was swimming with questions. What did she see? Was it real? Should she have told the team? She didn’t. This looked like something that was supposed to be a secret and it should probably stay that way. But now she knew and had no idea what to do with the information. She didn’t know what to tell the team, so she just said she couldn’t find him. Apparently, that was possible since no one questioned her afterwards. Either that, or they knew something. Luckily, he didn’t show up. “Sunset…” She heard something call her, something distant. “Sunset… SUNSET!” She jolted up, turned around, and hit her head against something hard. “Ow,” said a Sunset said, along with another voice. She looked up and saw Fluttershy rubbing her forehead. “Oh, Fluttershy. Sorry. Are you okay?” “I’m fine,” Fluttershy replied. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you. It’s just that I’d been calling you for a while, but you didn’t reply. I hope I wasn’t interrupting anything.” “No, no. It’s fine. I was just thinking about…” She stopped herself. “Never mind. What’s up?” “Oh, I was wondering if you had seen Digit around.” Sunset’s heart stopped for a moment. Oh, great. She was still in a state of bemusement at what she saw the day before. Plus, she hadn’t seen him all day. Their morning classes on Thursdays were different, but they usually bumped into each other in the hall or during their free period, which fell on the same time. Then again, while she hung out in the library, he usually stayed in one of the science labs. “Um, no, sorry. Why? Do you need anything?” “Not really. I just wanted to thank him for not letting me get hit during gym yesterday.” “Oh. Well, I’m sure he’s bound to pop up sooner or later.” Speaking of which… She looked at the clock. Only ten minutes had gone by since her free period started; fifty more minutes to go. Twilight would be arriving in three… two… one… “Hi, Sunset,” Twilight said. She looked like she was rushing, carrying about three large books in her arms when they could have been in her bag. “Sorry I’m a bit late. Had to finish a report on the history of the… oh, hi Fluttershy.” “Hi, Twilight. Are you okay? You look like you were in a hurry.” “I told Sunset I’d help her with her spatial magic studies if she helped me with magic applications. Did you need anything?” “No, it’s fine,” Fluttershy replied. “Sunset already helped. Besides, I wouldn’t want to get in the way. Bye, girls.” She waved them goodbye as she left the library. “Pretty convenient how all our free periods fall on the same time, huh?” Sunset said as she opened a textbook. “Yeah. But one question?” “Hm?” “Why me? I thought Digit or Nox helped with that?” Sunset froze. Again, someone brought up Digit. “Oh, um, yeah, well, I couldn’t find them, so I thought I’d ask you for help. Besides, you’re the magic genius.” “Oh, okay,” Twilight said, smiling. “Well then, let’s get started.” Sunset was only paying attention for about two minutes at a time until her mind drifted off for about five minutes. The scene she saw yesterday was practically seared into her memory: Digit splitting into two, brutally beating the second with such savagery she never even knew existed, then absorbing him, or something, back into an odd mark across his chest. It replayed over and over until… “And that was how Professor Paradox discovered the Fourth-Dimensional Photon Motion Theory.” “Uh huh,” Sunset replied, half attentive. “Sunset? Are you okay?” Twilight asked. “Okay, where did I lose you?” Sunset’s space-out ended as she said, “Huh? No, no, I got it. Just… quite a lot to take in at once. But, I’ll look over it again later.” She closed the book and pushed it aside. “Now, I believe a certain genius was about to ask me for help on applications of magic?” she asked with a grin. Twilight rolled her eyes. “Wow, you’re turning into Rainbow,” she said, grinning back. “Ah! Take me to an asylum, quick!” They both laughed. Then there was a “SSSSSSSSHHHHHHHH”. They turned and saw the librarian, Mr. Bookmark, staring at them and pointing to the “QUIET IN THE LIBRARY” sign next to her. “Sorry,” they both whispered. “So, you’re still not going to tell me, huh?” Lavender had spent the past two days trying to annoy Nightshade into submission; at home, on the way to school, and now during their free period, which they spent in a café a few minutes from the school. The latter had told her that she just had a run-in with some thugs when she went for a walk on said night and didn’t want to risk blowing their cover when someone stumbled upon something that may reveal who they truly are. “I’m pretty sure you can handle a few thugs, Night.” “There were ten of ‘em,” Nightshade responded as she sipped her coffee. Her wounds healed, but her mind was still a bit rattled. She was still trying to wrap her head around someone could survive what he had gone through, and he didn’t seemed mentally scarred in any way either, which made it doubly weird. “Besides, quite a few people know who I am. If I fought back, I could’ve left some trail that would lead back to us and then you’d have to cut your schooling session short and then you’d blame me.” Which would be much better than having to face trial for not killing one, sorry, love-struck kid. “Aw, you do care?” Lavender said, leaning closer, over the table. “Deep down that tough layer of anger jealousy, and… other things is a soft heart.” Nightshade stared at her. “You’ve been reading too many kids books, Lavender.” The younger girl smiled at her. “So, where’s Descent?” “Not sure. He said something about helping Bane find something. I don’t know, wasn’t really paying attention.” Later that day, Fluttershy went to get her pen from the nature studies lab. It wasn’t uncommon for her to forget some of her things after class, but it wasn’t a regular thing either. As she walked out, she heard a loud crash and a voice. “GAH! Ugh! Stupid… freaking… metal… grrr!” She ran down the hall and took a left and what she saw made her heart jump. Digit was standing by his open locker, holding his hand in pain. “Omigoodness! Are you okay?” she said as she rushed over to him. “Yeah,” Digit replied. “Locker got jammed. Don’t worry about it.” There was a cut across his palm and fingers and there was some blood on a small, torn sheet of metal hanging from the locker. Damn, he thought, Should’ve double-checked the locker. Well played you annoying bastard. “You’re bleeding!” Fluttershy said. She normally got queasy at the sight of blood, but, for some odd reason, that was never the case if it was an injury like this. She reached into her shoulder bag and brought out a bandage roll. “Hold on.” She wrapped the bandage around his injured hand and tore it off at the end. She used a small clip to hold it. “There.” Digit looked at his bandaged hand. “Uh, thanks.” “Oh, it’s the least I could do. Oh, and I wanted to thank you for, you know, not letting me get hit in the face with a ball of energy. So, um, thanks.” “No problem,” Digit said, smiling warmly. It was the kind of smile that could melt an ice queen’s heart. “What kind of person would I be if I let a pretty face like that get hurt?” Fluttershy blushed. He… he thinks I’m pretty. As he walked away, Fluttershy called out to him. “Are you doing anything tomorrow?” She immediately clasped her hands over her mouth. Crap! I just said that out loud! Digit looked back at her. “Yeah. Got a training session and I will never be safe again if I don’t go.” Fluttershy breathed a sigh of relief. For some reason, she wanted to go out with him, but she wasn’t much of a dating person. “I’m free on Saturday night, though.” Her heart was now pounding with joy, while her mind kept asking, “Why? Why? Why? Why? WHY?!” “Oh, um, okay. Um, I’ll, uh, see you then. Gottagobye!” She took off, her Skyborn heritage kicking in as she left a burst of wind as she ran. She stopped when she reached the main exit/entrance to the school. What were you thinking? Wait, was I thinking? She had no idea why she asked him out. Maybe she had a thing for guys who stood up for others. She had no idea. “Hey Fluttershy.” “Eep!” Fluttershy jumped and held the top of the doorframe. “Wow. You don’t like gym, but you sure can move when you want to.” Fluttershy looked down to see a certain rainbow-haired teen smiling up at her. “Oh, Rainbow Dash. I’ve told you not to sneak up on me like that,” Fluttershy said as she floated down. “Or do I need to get a heart attack first before you understand?” “Sorry, Flutts,” Rainbow said, “But y’know it’s not my fault you scare so easily… no offence.” “None taken. And I guess you’re right about that.” They both laughed. “So, where were you?” Rainbow asked as they left. “You said you were going back to get a pen. What, did you lose it again or something?” Fluttershy froze for a moment to gather her thoughts. “Oh, um, I went to thank Digit for earlier.” Rainbow’s smile suddenly vanished. “Ugh, you went to thank that guy?” “Well, yes. Not everyone would make that attempt to help someone else. I just thought it was a nice thing and decided to repay him by thanking him… but, um…” “But what?” Rainbow asked curiously. “Um, I think everyone should hear the next part. Let’s head over to Rarity’s place.” Bane was standing on front of the mirror in Lavender’s room installing a new frame when he heard them come in. “We’re home!” Lavender announced from downstairs. “I think I’m starting to get used to the whole idea of school. But considering what you’ve told me about other people’s reactions towards school, is there something I’ve missed?” “Don’t worry about it, Milady,” Bane replied as he came down. He was wearing a gray t-shirt, black trousers, and gray sandals. “Different people have different opinions.” “Uh, Bane, if you don’t mind, I think I prefer Lavender. And I’m not just saying that because of our cover. I seriously don’t like the whole royal formality thing. We’re all more like friends here.” Bane raised an eyebrow. Lavender was never one for “royal formalities” and he knew it, but he had always thought that it was better in establishing their relationship, even if he was old enough to e her father. “Very well… Miss Lavender.” Lavender thought for a while. “Well, it’s a start. Now we need to work on getting the “Miss” out,” she said smiling. She went up to her room and looked at the mirror. She noticed the frame. “Oh, is this new?” She asked curiously, admiring the sleek mahogany frame and the vine-like adornments that were engraved into it. “Yes,” Bane replied. “Which reminds me, it’s time.” “Time for…?” Lavender asked. Bane just looked at her. It took her quite a while to process what he meant. “… Oh… crap.” “I thought you would be a bit more upbeat about this.” “Yeah, well, my joy was cut short when I remembered that the world’s most annoying bitch is going to be there.” “Ah, yes. You two have never really gotten along, have you?” Bane asked as he brought out a hunting knife from his pocket. “You don’t seem to have a problem with any of the others, though.” “They are not constantly in my face.” Bane shrugged he began carving a symbol into the mirror. By the time he was done, the symbol resembled a long, winged snake that appeared to be eating its own tail. Lavender walked up to the mirror and tapped it twice. It began to ripple like the surface of a lake. Slowly, the image on the mirror changed: her reflection remained, but the background changed from the scene of her purple and pink bedroom to that of a dark, cavernous room. “Would you like us to accompany you?” Bane asked. “Nah,” she replied waving her hand, “I’ve got this one.” She stepped through the mirror and was instantly transported to the location on the other end. She turned to see the image of her room was still there. She reached through it and something landed in her hand. She pulled it out and saw a small, purple seed. She smiled and put it in her pocket. She walked down the long, cavernous hall, lit by glowing crystals. After a while she came to a door. Two eight-foot tall crystalline figures stood in front of it, spears crossed to block her path. “Oh, come on guys,” she said batting her eyelashes. They didn’t as much as twitch. “You guys are no fun,” Lavender said, pouting. “Fine. Silk.” They moved their spears and the crystal doors opened. There was a long table with chairs on each side and one at each end. “Lavender!” The voice warmed the girl’s heart. “How have you been?” “Not bad, Symbol Spell,” she replied to a young, blonde, blue-eyed man wearing a long white cloak with gold trim over a white shirt, black trousers, and black shoes. He was sitting along on his side of the table. On the other side was a figure wearing a midnight blue cloak with a series of straps strapped in place rather tightly wearing a similarly colored witch hat with a smiley face button hanging from the tip of the limp top. The black scarf around its shoulder turned into a pair of arms, one of which waved at her. She waved back as she walked over to sit next to Symbol Spell. “Hm, so now we await-“ “Well, it seems that you finally decided to start taking things seriously and arrived on time today.” “There it is,” Lavender said as she turned to the doorway to see a rather pale woman who appeared to be in her mid-to-late thirties. She had green eyes, flowing greenish-blue hair, and wore a long black dress. The sides of the dress had pale green accents, as did the shoulders, and a similarly colored band, divided into three segments by black lines, ran around her midriff. She wore a black crown with a hole that let her green focus gem fit through. “Lavender,” she said blankly. “Chrysalis,” Lavender replied with the same enthusiasm. “I thought my little speech would get you back on your feet.” “Well, you thought wrong. I just got bored doing nothing.” “Settle down, you two,” said Symbol, “He’s here.” They turned to the black shadow that formed in front of the chair. It solidified to reveal a figure clad in silver armor and a red cloak with fuzzy white edges with black dots. The figure’s entire body seemed to be made of shadows or some kind of thick, black mist. He smiled sinisterly, revealing his fanged canines and other sharp teeth. “Ah, I’m pleased to see you could all make it today,” he said. His voice was deep and husky, but relatively calm. “I would like to keep this short, so we shall simply discuss your progress so far and what the next step shall be. Symbol Spell?” Symbol tapped the black crystal table and a blob of black liquid floated from it and took on the shape of the planet. Three red dots appeared on the globe and kept blinking and changing positions. “The objects seem to be in a state of flux. They keep changing positions randomly and their positions are difficult to track due to a distortion spell placed on them. It’s either high level illusionary or chaos magic. I have, however, found a few books that I can use to get some information that could help make things a bit easier.” The figure nodded and turned to Chrysalis. “Same thing on my end. I’ve stationed some of my Changelings at known magic hotspots. Should it appear, they will attempt to retrieve it and alert me of any occurrences.” The figure nodded and turned to Lavender. “I’ve just established another checkpoint in the Rainbow Spring Forest a couple of weeks ago, just a few hundred meters from the Resonance Lake. The cavern is full of magically imbued gems and my Changeling have already begun mining. Several barrier and illusion spells were cast on that area to prevent it from being located and the creatures that reside there would scare off anyone else who tries to cross into my territory.” The figure smiled. “And if the intruder is brave or stupid enough to cross over? What if they do defeat these terrifying creatures?” Chrysalis sneered. Lavender looked back at her. “Then they’ll have to deal with my army of my personal guard… or me, if I get bored,” she added smiling. “Very well,” said the figure, “Then we are all on schedule. Chrysalis, expand your watch. Station troops at any and every magic hotspot they can handle. Symbol, get those books and get reading, immediately. I want a report on your findings every three days, at most. Lavender, I want an inventory of all the gems you have mined as of the moment you send it.” They all nodded. “What about him?” Symbol asked, gesturing to the cloaked figure sitting next to Chrysalis. “He hasn’t said a word.” The shadow figure smiled. “He knows what he needs to do. Dismissed.” With that, he turned into his shadow form and sank into the ground and they all began to head for the door. Chrysalis felt something hold her and looked down to see a vine holding her arm. She turned to see Lavender, her hands and focus gem covered in a purple aura, her eyes filled with anger. “The next time you question my work like that again, I don’t care who’s around, nor do I care how important your contribution is supposed to be, I will kill you myself. Do you hear me?” The rage underneath her calm voice was almost tangible. “HOW DARE YOU?!” Chrysalis summoned her scythe and slashed off the vines. She tapped the ground with the end and the earth cracked and glowed as creatures made of bone, clad in armor, rose from the ground. She smiled. “You think Changelings are the only things I can control?” The undead warriors brandished their weapons and surrounded Chrysalis. “Ha! You actually need those things?” Lavender said, cracking her knuckles. “I’ll show you exactly what I meant when I said I would take care of intruders myself if I ever got bored.” The magic aura around her hands sparked and extended into a pair or energy whips. “That’s enough, both of you,” Symbol said, standing in between them. Lavender glared for a while, then retracted her weapons. Chrysalis, however, left her little army out, as well as her scythe. As Lavender walked out, Chrysalis blocked her with the scythe. “Never touch me again. Or else, I’ll kill you. Simple as that. Learn some respect for your elders.” Lavender smacked the scythe out of her way and said, “Earn it first, you wretched old bitch,” as she left the room. “You did WHAT?!” Twilight cried. “I don’t know what happened,” Fluttershy replied. “I just wanted to thank him. Then it just… sort off… came out, I guess.” “There’s only one explanation for this,” Rarity said. “Fluttershy… developed a subconscious crush based on the events of that day.” The other five girls stared at her. “Think about it.” “I’d prefer not to,” Rainbow muttered under her breath. “A girl is very likely to fall for a guy that does something to prevent them from getting hurt. Even something like saving a girl from getting hit by an open door can trigger some… possible dormant affections… or outbursts of it, anyway.” They all stared at her. “Well, it’s the best explanation we’ve got,” Twilight said. “I still don’t get it,” Rainbow said, folding her arms. “Well, he does seem kinda approachable,” Applejack added. Rainbow grumbled. “Look, Rainbow, I know ya don’t like the guy, but did you ever bother to think that maybe you got off on the wrong foot?” “I considered that the foot we got off on was the only foot.” “You’re impossible,” Applejack said, face-palming. Sunset spoke up. "You could just call it off." They all looked at her. "From what I know about the guy, he's pretty considerate. He'll probably understand." Twilight looked at her. "Well, it's worth a shot. But it's entirely up to you, Fluttershy." “COME ON, PEOPLE! I WANNA SEE YOU SWEAT TILL YOUR NOTHIN’ BUT HUSKS!” The Sparks (again, Zest) had come to a conclusion: either Pixel enjoyed working them to death, or she’s taking out her anger towards her old gym coach on them. Either way, it was not enjoyable. “YOU’VE STILL GOT TWENTY MORE LAPS TO GO!” “Say… WHAT?!” Sunset and Trixie were lagging behind while Zest took the front, followed by Digit and Nox, then Amethyst. “We just did our twentieth lap… and each lap is a mile!” “Exactly,” Pixel said, her voice now lowered. “That way, you’ll be able to run any distance with the stamina of a bison… at least.” “I think we’d be too sore to run anywhere,” said Amethyst. Twenty laps later, Pixel decided to call them in for a group huddle. “So, unfortunately, the rest of the gang couldn’t make it. Surprise and Aerial had some Wonderbolt business to attend to, Sapphire and Chrome have jobs in law enforcement, and Harebell had urgent business back at Dodge Junction.” “Thank Faust,” Digit said with a sigh of relief. “Thought she was going to sit on me again.” “Wait, what?” Sunset asked with a chuckle. “N-Nothing.” “I thought guys were into that kind of thing,” Amethyst added. “Not the point. And you can’t generalize on everything.” “Point being, you’re on your own now. Besides, I’m pretty sure that with all your endurance training, you should be ready. Just work on your weaknesses and buff up your strengths and you’ll be fine.” That instant, a bright blue portal opened up behind her. “That’s my cue. See ya!” She jumped backwards into the portal, which vanished instantly, leaving the team to just stare on. “She ditched us,” Amethyst said blankly. Then, she punched Digit. “Ow. Why?” “You guys are siblings. Don’t you share some weird biological bond?” “First off, that’s a myth. Second, I’m pretty sure the bond is mental, not physical.” “Meh. So what now?” They all just stared. Meanwhile, Pixel made her way to the Starswirl Academy when she felt something odd. She rubbed her shoulder. “What the…? Why did it feel like a five-year-old just tried to punch me?” She shrugged and kept walking. Back at the new Heart residence, Lavender was bored… again. “Bags packed, chapters read, homework done… urgh, back to boredom.” She collapsed on her bed and took out her smartphone. She smiled as she scrolled through the pictures she took on her date with Digit; the Spire, the ice cream, the walk. “Well, it was fun while it lasted.” She got up and walked out and noticed Nightshade’s door was unlocked. “Maybe Nighty and I can chat the night away.” Meanwhile, Nightshade and Descent were on their way home from the supermarket, hands full of groceries. “I’m telling you,” Nighshade said as she sucked on a lollipop, “The kid was savage.” “Why do you keep calling him kid?” Descent asked. “You’re practically the same age.” “One year older,” Nightshade replied, pointing at herself with a wing, which she retracted. “Besides, he doesn’t really act his age, he acts much younger.” “Speaking of savage, how long till meltdown?” “Huh?” Descent groaned. “Must I spell it out? How long till Lavender finds out?” “The longer, the better. Never is a blessing from Faust herself!” They flew over the gates and went through the door. They dropped the things in the kitchen. “Well, I’m off to bed. Still got some kinks in my back I need to sleep off. That’s what happens when you get slammed into a tree.” Descent just laughed. “I think the sleep thing is a good idea for both of us.” They went up together. As they opened the door, they saw Lavender, sitting on Nightshade’s bed, holding a piece of paper. They both froze as she looked up. “Hello, Nighty,” she said in the kind of voice you’d expect from an eight-year-old homicidal psychopath. “I’ve been waiting for you.” “R-Really?” Nightshade was paralyzed. What the hell is she doing here? Lavender got up and walked towards them. She held out a sheet of paper. “I wanted to ask what this was.” “I-It was a letter from some dumb kid who thought he had a chance with me.” Not entirely false, but he certainly had a better chance than most of the other losers. “Really? Because I recognize this hand writing.” She brought out a piece of paper from the back of her cellphone cover. “This was from one and a half years ago.” She held the two notes side-by-side, hers saying something about agreeing to a mutual break and meeting to make it official. “He was so sweet and gentlemanly... and probably the least jerky guy I’d dated. So I now ask: why in the name of all that’s unholy in the fiery pits of Tartarus IS HE STILL ALIVE AND DATING?!” Nightshade reeled back from the force of the yell. She looked at Descent who said only one thing. “Kaboom,” he said, calmly. “So, you came,” Digit said. He was wearing a gray sleeveless shirt, blue khakis, and blue and white trainers. A girl with long pink hair walked towards him. She was wearing a pink shirt, yellow sweater, blue jeans, and yellow sandals. “Oh, um, I’m sorry I’m late,” Fluttershy said. “It’s just that-“ “You were having second thoughts and you were trying to look for a way out because you felt it was a mistake based on some foreign and unwanted instinct?” he finished for her. She just stared. “Yeah, I figured. Contrary to popular belief, I’m pretty good at reading people. I don’t do it out loud because I don’t want to look like I’m judging them and I don’t want to be seen as a know-it-all.” “Oh, um…” “Look, for your trouble, how about I walk you home.” Fluttershy opened her mouth to speak, but he said, “And no, it won’t be a bother.” She nodded and they headed off. “So, where do you live?” “About two miles east of the Everfree.” Digit stopped. “I, uh, think it would be faster if we fly. Not to sound lazy, but that’s a two hour walk… at half past nine.” Fluttershy nodded. She summoned her ethereal yellow wings, which solidified to a translucent color. Digit stared at her for a while, then held her hand before she could take off. “Hey, uh, can you keep a secret?” Fluttershy was confused. “Um, sure. What is it?” “You have to promise not to tell anybody. Not a soul, not soulless being. Not even your friends or teammates.” Fluttershy looked down. He squeezed her hand a bit harder. “Please. I just feel like you’re the only person I can trust with this knowledge. Only my family and Princesses Celestia and Luna know about it, but I feel like I can trust you with it. So, can I?” He seemed nice enough, and she had no reason to doubt that he had a good reason for confiding in her. She nodded. He let go of her hand and took a few steps back. A light blue magic aura surrounded him and began to twist and warp as it crawled up his body. A large amount of it folded over to his back and went from transparent to translucent. Then, they burst out. Fluttershy stared in awe at the glorious, ethereal, translucent blue wings that appeared behind his back with an impressive three-foot wingspan. They looked like dragon wings, but instead of the normal scaly appearance, these ones looked smooth. There was a large, white circle in the middle and five lines extended from all around it, following the path the bones would be. He looked at her. “I-I-I thought you used self-levitation? Like Twilight? “I do. But only because no one is allowed to see these,” he said, gesturing to the wings. “So why tell me?” Digit walked over to her and looked her in the eye. “Because… because you remind me of someone I used to trust almost as much as my sister. The only difference between you two were your personalities. She was a lot more like Pinkie.” They chuckled at the thought of Fluttershy acting like Pinkie. She held his hand. “Don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me.” He smiled. “So, um, shall we?” “Ladies first.” She nodded and gently levitated off the ground. She was considerably high up when she looked down and saw him take off to meet her. It took her about eight seconds to reach her current height; he was next to her in two. She just gawked. “Yeah. That was her first reaction too. I didn’t have these back then, but I was a pretty fast flyer for an Esper using self-levitation.” She nodded as they flew off. She watched him fly next to her gracefully. After a while, he ducked beneath a cloud and popped up beneath her. “Oh, oh my.” Digit looked up at her. “How about I just fly you home?” She nodded hesitantly. “Th-That would be n-nice, I g-g-guess.” She was amazed at how smooth the ride was. It was almost terrifying. The only other that had done this was Rainbow Dash, and she wasn’t exactly the kind to go for slow joy rides. This was new territory for her… and she liked it. “There,” she said, as they approached a small apartment building. Behind it was one of the many entrances to the Everfree Forest. It wasn’t as terrifying as the inside, it just looked like an ordinary, non-magical forest… which were uncommon in Etheria. As they landed he dove suddenly and she fell off his back. Just before she hit the ground, he caught her and set her down. She looked up, shaken, as he landed in front of her, laughing. “I’m sorry. I… I couldn’t help myself,” he said as he forced back the laughter. “Th-That wasn’t funny,” Fluttershy said. “A bit scary, but not funny. Did you do that with her?” Digit’s laugh turned into a weak smile. “No, the roles were flipped. I was the scared one.” Fluttershy felt bad now. “Oh, um, I’m sorry if that was too personal. It’s just that-“ “No, I’m sorry. I probably shouldn’t have done that, anyway.” He looked at the apartment building. “I though you stayed at the dorms?” “Well, I come here over the weekends when…” she paused. “Shoot! I forgot we were having a sleepover! They be here any minute!” “’Kay then. I’m gone.” As he floated up, she said, “I promise, I won’t tell anyone, with or without a soul.” He smiled and took off. “Hey girls,” she said as Twilight, Applejack, Sunset, Pinkie, and Rarity arrived. “Hey there, Fluttershy,” Applejack greeted back. “How’d the date go? Apparently it didn’t take long enough to miss the sleepover.” “Oh, I wouldn’t miss one for the world. And it wasn’t a date. I just took Sunset’s advice and called it off. You were right,” she said, turning to Sunset, “He was understanding.” Sunset smiled. “So he just walked me home.” “Just now?” asked Twilight. “We didn’t see him on the way here.” Fluttershy panicked a bit. “Oh, uh, he took a different way.” “Which way?” “He, uh… self-levitated.” Twilight stared for a while. Fluttershy was scared that Twilight might figure out something was up. “Oh. Okay. Personally, I think it’s a waste of magic energy, but it’s his magic.” Fluttershy breathed a sigh of relief. “Rainbow’s late, as usual.” Meanwhile, a figure sitting on a cloud stared off into the distance, watching a certain blue speck fly off. “So that’s what you’re hiding, you son of a bitch.” She looked down from the cloud she was sitting on and saw some girls chatting. “I hope you at least tell your friends, Shy.” Elsewhere, a certain pink-haired young woman in a mulberry shirt, black trousers, and black shoes was walking out of a library, carrying a huge stack of books. She held the pile with one hand and locked the door with the other. She groaned. “Never thought I’d wish to be the school librarian again. Maybe they’ll take me back if I asked nicely.” As she walked over to her car, she felt an odd chill. She looked around. “Who’s there?” She walked faster and faster, but tripped over something she couldn’t see over the pile of books. She looked back and saw her leg caught in what looked like a golden vine. She pulled to no avail. “Evening,” said a voice, causing her to jump. “Sorry for the inconvenience, but you have some things I need.” The books she was carrying were covered in a golden aura as they floated towards a shadowy figure, who scrolled through the books. “Ah, yes. This is exactly what I need.” He looked up to her. “I hope you don’t mind if I borrow these without a library card.” The woman kept trying to pull herself free as the man approached her. “L-Leave me alone! Who are you?” The man stopped in front of her and raised her up with the vine. “I’m just a researcher. And I’m quite invested in a particular topic…” He leaned in to her ear. “…The Trinity Jewels.” The woman froze. “Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of these,” he said, gesturing to the levitating books. “However, I can’t promise the same about you.”