//------------------------------//
// Trouble 
// Story: Care Root's Bizarre Adventure 
// by Ditherer the Fussbudget 
//------------------------------//


Silver


The hallways are just about empty around lunchtime, so getting to the auditorium is child’s play. Its doors are large and black, without handles or windows, and a little grimy. You glance over your shoulder at Diamond, who's a foot behind, and a little nervous. 

“Sure you want to join?”

Her reaction’s muted, considered. ”Yeah.” 

Diamond’s not how you remember her. Not in a bad way, either. It’s like she’s… more than she used to be. 

Anyway, it's seconds before you find them in the auditorium, sitting together onstage. The lights are off, but you can't miss their silhouettes. They didn't used to stand together constantly, but they grew into it. Now that you're a Stand user, you can feel the bond between them even more strongly. Maybe their Stands work together?

Either way, the musty dusty crusty mess of the auditorium lets out a creaking echo when you push open the doors. They don't react. In fact, they don't acknowledge you at all until you're close enough to make out which of them is which.

Scootaloo speaks first, around an egg salad sandwich. "Look who it is." She's not quite looking at you.

Bloom pipes up. "Glad you healed up so quick."

Diamond doesn't answer. 

Sweetie doesn't turn her head, just staring out into the empty seats. "What are you here for?"

You clear your throat. “We’re looking for answers.”

Sweetie smiles a little. ”Does Care know you’re running around for him?” 

You pause, shrug off their creepy ability to know these things, and then shake your head.

Scootaloo picks up from there. ”What are the questions?” And with that invitation, the next few minutes are awash with exposition.

“What happened to Trixie Lulamoon?”

”She stole something and ran off school grounds.”

“What?”

”A magical artifact. It’s the only complete one in the set.”

You’re about to ask how many others there are, but Diamond pipes up.

“Why was it here?”

”Safekeeping. Anywhere else would be putting it at risk.”

“Is she in danger?”

Scootaloo shrugs. ”Aren’t all of us?”

Then Belle speaks up again. ”There’s a battle, a real one, and whoever gets their hands on all three stones wins.”

Diamond asks another sensible question, even though she’s hovering around your shoulder. ”Who’s fighting?”

Silence, looks among the three, then Apple Bloom: ”We don’t know. It’s about all we can do to keep our class in order. Not that you two were keen on helping us out with that.” Inside, you wince a little, and decide not to press them. 

For her part, Diamond hmmms. ”You are working for the Rainbooms, right?”

Apple Bloom answers. ”Of course! They’re our sisters, after all.”

Before you can ask another question, Belle speaks. ”If you want to help, there’s a house we were supposed to investigate. Maybe you’ll find a clue there.”

”Or else I'll find something dangerous?” You ask.

All three nod, once. The way they move gets creepier the longer you have to look at them, and you have to resist the urge to shudder - but that’s how you get the address for an abandoned house. The bell rings as soon as you get the information, and carries you off into the rest of your day. Toward the end, the plan solidifies between you and Diamond, wordlessly. 

Derpy’s not going to be in tonight, and Golden’s already skipped half the day to go home. Calls to your parents asking to sleep over at each-others’ houses go off without a hitch. Diamond’s been spending a lot of time at your house anyway. Growing up with her hasn’t just taught you about lying, but the finer art of steering lies. Navigating through the web, never being caught without a ready response, and padding out enough to make people want them to be true.

You feel downright Machiavellian.

”Silver…”

You turned to her. “Yeah?”

”Did they have their Stand out?” Right, she can't see those. It was really hard to look away for the first couple hours you had yours. 

You shake your head. “I don’t think so.”

”I don’t trust them. I never liked them in the first place, but...”

“Yeah. I know. They seem too... together.”

You only barely hear her mutter a response. ”Maybe because I’m not.”

You frown. Neither of you say anything else on the way to class.


Care


It's been a little while since anything big happened at school. Derpy's been busy for a few days: lots of homework, spending time with Silver and Diamond, and so on. You both know it's really your fault, but she never mentions it.

Things have been cooling off recently, like the focus has shifted somewhere else. Every day that you don't need to use your Stand is a victory. You almost dropped a few grades in some of your classes, for once. And today, you're on a date to the movies! It's at one of the rich people theaters, too, with the five hours of before-previews commercials and its own radio station.

The tickets are going to cost you, but you don’t really spend money on anything else. At least, besides gas and groceries.

The point is, you’re due at her house in an hour, and then you’ll be on your way. And, more because you have time than out of any real need, you make a detour. Candy always tastes better when it’s bought in a chintzy dollar store and snuck into the theater, and Canterlot Mall’s dollar store is the absolute chintziest.


Diamond Tiara


The last few days have been a whirlwind. 

You were in a coma for no time at all, but you feel like it should’ve changed you. Your dad’s actually paying attention to you now, and it’s almost creepy. No, not creepy, but, y’know, uncomfortable. Ish. He used to always react to you instead of trying to start conversations. You guess that’s what everyone else’s dads do.

You don’t even know what you’re thinking now.

A lot was involved in bringing you back to the land of the living, though. And oh, what a land it is. All of the other kids are ignoring you now - they’re on the Crusaders’ side, of course. You can’t really blame them, either.

Silver’s tougher, too. You hadn’t noticed she was weaker before until you saw the way she stands now. Stands. Hah. 

It seems like everyone’s changed except you. That's a big part of why you’re in favor of going to the creepazoid shack on the edge of town. Even if you’re stuck, the only reason you’re not having some unending nightmare is because of Silver, and her sisters, and Care Root.  The thought that they saved your life and didn’t want something from you for it makes you feel...guilty?

No, it's simpler than that. It’s a debt, and you can’t stand being on the wrong side of those. Today, you’re going to save them the trouble and the cost. Even it means riding a public bus, Diamond Tiara always gets even. 

Silver’s with you all the way, still wearing her backpack. You hope that her Stand gives her some kind of protection this far out, but you're a little afraid to ask in case it doesn't. She doesn’t act like she’s vulnerable, but maybe that’s just because she’s aware of the threats. 

For the whole trip, the two of you laugh about the lightweightiest person in your class, Featherweight. 

”Yeah, and then he did the, the-!” You mime the face he made when he tried to do a pull-up in PE. She points at your impression and covers her mouth to snicker. Some things never change.

But eventually the bus lurches, and the door jerks open. You glance out the window for the street signs, and Silver nods. Then quickly, you dispatch yourselves into the afternoon air.


Care Root


You're hunched over a display of movie-theater candy, planning. Do you dare go with something that could make noise when you walk, let alone melt? Or do you gravitate towards more varied but non-chocolatey fare? It’s hard to ignore how stained the carpeting of this store is.

You'll also have to buy some zipper bags to put these in, and then stuff them into your pockets. 

The sign above you says that cameras are watching you. You wonder idly, after a moment, whether you could steal this candy if you wanted to. No matter how much you spend, your Stand’s only ever changed your sum total happiness once. Are your decisions your own?

Probably. You mean, Derpy has free will. It’s not like you could tell, but maybe your Stand only highlights the important things you’ll do anyway. It’s not limited by computing power or anything.

Even if it’s dictating your path to you, you could probably throw off the path by leaving. Jump in your car, head in a random direction until you’d never see her again. 

Not that you ever would, of course. You have a core feeling that you could spend your whole life looking and never find a girl who would make your Stand change again. That day was the start of an incredibly happy moment in your life. But... why didn’t ｢Timbuk Three｣ predict the switch in the first place? Even if you could have two destinies, one miserable and one bright, shouldn’t it have known?

”Hey, Kid.” You turn your head.

There are two students whose names you never knew to begin with. Lowerclassmen, orange and blue, tall and lumpy, ten feet away. 

The blue one’s got a nasty bruise on his forehead, and he does the talking. ”Where is she?”

You want to knock their skulls together for bothering you right now. But you just stare at them, quiet. Then you point, surreptitiously, to the cameras-are-watching-you sign.

Blue sours. ”We’ll talk more in the parking lot.”

Then they fall back a few feet, and go mill around outside of the store. And you go back to choosing your candy.


Silver


You get off the sidewalk once you see your destination. The house hasn’t been touched by anyone in years, one of those that isn’t brought down because no one can muster up a good reason to trash it. The grass is up to ridiculous heights, and the structure itself is all wood. Darker splotches decorate it, some of the stairs are splintered, but everything’s locked and closed.

All in all, it’s the yard you don’t want to lose your frisbee in. With Diamond behind you, you duck into another empty backyard and survey the house from another angle. Still two stories, but on the back of the second floor there’s one of those weird doors that goes nowhere. The front had a porch of some kind, but here’s it’s just a backdoor and the grass, staved off from where you’re standing by a sturdy fence.

You try to get a look in through the windows, but it’s all dust, curtains and darkness. There’s a sudden creaking.

”Get down!” Diamond hisses at you, pulling you into the grass. 

Through the slats of the fence, you see the backdoor open. Someone blue lingers in the doorway. Trixie?!

...No. No, Trixie doesn’t have hair like that, you’re just getting excited. She giggles, and it’s the wrong register, too. Then she leans in, into the door, and kisses someone. When she comes closer, she has something hovering over her shoulder like a ghost. Except… you've seen Stands, and it really is like a ghost. Translucent, grey, wispy.

You turn your head slightly to Diamond and mouth words. Do you see that? She doesn’t answer. 

The ghost turns and surveys the area. You can see her better as she walks up to the front yard. Blue-raspberry hair against dull clothes. You saw this girl when you competed in the Battle of the Bands, everyone did.

Diamond’s looking at you now, eyes serious. You remember the name from the tournament list: Sonata, one of three.

You whisper, half to Diamond and half to yourself. “Why here…?”

Sonata abruptly stops walking.

You shut your mouth.


Care


When you leave, bags in tow, they’re still waiting for you. They’re both almost solemn. They don’t even speak, and you walk past them towards the parking lot.

You could definitely get away from them if you were willing to shell out the price. But you don’t even try to run. Their footsteps pad after you on the linoleum, and soon the parking lot’s upon you.

You wait until you’re a good distance from the door. Closer to the horizon, cars drift in and out of view against the sunlight. You stand between it and them.

”We know you’re going to meet her. Where and when?”

You say nothing.

”Fine. Be that way.” A sudden headache affects you, and Orange darts forward, his Stand hovering out of his arm.

It’s purple, bumpy, ogrelike. You throw up a hand-sized barrier, and it simply passes through it. He’s holding a tiny vial of something, and suddenly it passes through your skin and into your arm. It's not even painful, surreally.

｢Timbuk Three｣ appears and roundhouse kicks him. Those purple arms appear again, crossed now, and he grunts as he’s pushed back. 

Your migraine subsides as Blue talks. ”That’s poison. Real bad stuff. I’ve got the antidote, but it’s unmarked and there’s a lot of nasty stuff on me, too. If you want to live, you have to earn it.”

Your heart rate and breathing start increasing. It’s like there’s something on the verge of your senses... The headache returns, but it was there before, so it wasn’t caused by the poison... Something in your stomach does a flip. Where the hell are these kids getting poison from?!

Blue takes your silence for an answer. ”Tch. Tell us or don’t. But you don’t have very long to make up your mind.”

Okay, that's enough of that. You've been pushed around more than enough by now, and you're not going to take it from a couple of half-pint kids looking to interrogate you. You focus on your arm, and your Stand shines a powerful light through it. It’s like holding a flashlight to your fingers to see the bones. 

”Don’t die for her, Kid," Blue says, and you ignore him alongside the vomit-sweatiness breaking out on your forehead.

A thought, and then a tiny glowing casket envelops the vial. Another, and it’s completely annihilated. It singes your muscles a little, but you’ve never been one for working out.

Blue sees this, and the look in your eye. “Snails, get him!”

Orange comes towards you again, his Stand’s arm apparent. You throw up another shield, and the Stand goes straight through it. He smiles viciously - you realize he really thinks it's fun to do this to you.

You smile back, and push the shield past his Stand and onto his arm. His fist gets jerked backwards, and its knobby counterpart never reaches you. While he’s stunned, ｢Timbuk Three｣ smashes a foot into his face.

Man, your Stand’s pretty good at kicking, isn’t it? 

He hits the ground, and he’s out. Without a second glance at him, you turn to Blue, who suddenly looks a lot less dangerous. 


Diamond Tiara


Sonata Dusk, the finalist in the Battle of the Bands, is only a few feet away, listening. You cover your mouth, trying not to hyperventilate. Silver, next to you, is staring out through the fence, and you have to resist the urge to take her shoulder and wrench her backwards for fear of the noise it would make in the grass.

You see sweat on her face. Both of you are wondering whether it’d be best to run away right now. Could you pretend to be kids who lived in the neighborhood? Would she know if you were lying? Damn it, you should’ve been ready for this!

Without any change in volume at all, Silver speaks again. ”I mean, there’s not even a pool back here.” You slice a finger across your throat, but she goes on without reacting to you, “And it’s next to a freaky Goosebumps house. What kind of party could some dork like Rumble throw here anyway?” Then she nods at you, eyes like dinnerplates.

You realize it’s your cue. “Y-yeah, what a loser. ...I bet his parents aren’t even leaving.”

”Yeah.” 

Behind the fence, Sonata shrugs and keeps walking. Your face trembles as you hold in a sigh of relief. 

She walks across the street, gets into a sleek blue car in their driveway, and drives off. Only when you can’t hear the sound of it any longer do either of you move.

Once you have a handle on your heartbeat, you turn back to the house. “Okay. What’s our plan from here?” 

Silver looks surprised. She was probably expecting you to tell her.

It takes a few tries to jump the fence, and you tear a line in your best yellow jacket. There’s no helping the rustle of the grass, but you don’t think anyone’s listening. You keep an eye out for traps, or mosquitoes.

Silver takes the lead, checking the door - there aren’t any locks on it, or a screen. When you stand just outside of it, your palms feel sweaty.

She grips the doorknob, because she’s closest, and turns it all the way before she makes any move. The thing nearly screeches when she pulls it outward. She cringes with you, waits for someone to call out, but no one does.

Gently, gradually, you both test the limits of the hinge. She eventually makes an opening big enough for the both of you. Hoping you don’t wind up on the news, you slip inside first.


Care


Leaving two unconscious students behind, you take your candy and go on your way. Even if it melts, chocolate has to be your go-to. Gosh, look at the time.

You make the drive efficiently, paying attention to the encroaching moment of brightness in your immediate future. It’s big enough to be worth something, too. Swinging by to pick up Derpy takes only a couple minutes. She’s wearing a black shirt with gamepad arrows on it, and little red earrings that glint in the light. You hadn’t known you were tense until you just relaxed. 

She smiles and climbs in with you. 

”How are the girls?” The way you say it makes you feel like you’re their dad. Shudder.

”They’ve done some growing up, but they’re alright. How have you been?”

Should you really mention being injected with poison at the start of your date? No, that would definitely nuke the mood.

You shrug. “Same old.”

”What movie are we seeing?”

Uh… crap. “I, uh, guess we still need to pick one.”

She looks for starting times on her phone while you drive. You don’t know whether you should rush or waste time, so you try some kind of compromise. If you listen closely over the machine-noise of the wheels, you can hear her reading the names under her breath.

”Fifty... La La... Hidden... Ohmigosh! Brawn Kick 2!”

You take your eyes off the road and look at her like it’s the first time you’ve seen her. ”You’ve seen the first one?”

“Of course!” She says, and looks up at you, making her face completely neutral and putting on a deep voice. "You stole my car and killed my dog."

...Somehow, whether by dumb luck, fate, an evil curse or some combination, you've managed to find the perfect woman. 

Her face returns to normal, and she looks at you, a little concerned. "Are you okay?"


Scootaloo


Sweetie says what you’re all thinking. ”I still think it’s dangerous to send Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon out there.”

You shrug, although neither of the others can hear that over the phone. “It is. But no matter what happens to them, it’s still better for us.” You’re not lying. If they break in and take another gem-shard, even if they don’t hand it over, things are still better.

And if they’re never heard from again… Well, that’ll only bring the present situation to a boil even faster.

Bloom speaks. ”I think so too. No point in worrying when it’s no skin off our backs.”

”Do you really feel that way?” Sweetie asks, and neither of you answer. After a little more discussion, you all hang up and enjoy your evenings separately. 

There are things you wish you could tell the other two. That it all really is for a higher goal, and that it’ll all be okay in the end. But then she’d erase their memory of the conversation. You doubt even you’ll know the truth for much longer.

What matters for your future are getting to the gems, keeping everyone else away from them, and making Care Root stay desperate.

｢To Be Continued｣