//------------------------------// // Chapter 6 // Story: Blamed // by Madox //------------------------------// Night had fallen when the two girls left Shimmer’s home and went on their way. Both of them kept their eyes open the whole trip to the bus station in case Gilda was still running around looking for them, but the streets were for the most part abandoned besides a few people getting off from work. They soon reached the bus station, and after a short ride, they arrived at Sunset’s neighborhood, which was only lit by the streetlights. The two girls continued their journey with Sunset leading the way. “I’ve never been in this part of the city before,” Shimmer said while she looked around the dark streets. “That’s not a surprise, since this neighborhood has been built just recently,” Sunset replied. "My family is one of the first to move in, but I haven’t met anyone else yet. We might even be the first to move in.” “Hmm, guess it won’t take long for that to change; those houses look amazing. Your parents must be well off to be able to afford one shortly after being built.” “Yeah, it’s not something I like to mention, but we are quite above average regarding incoming,” Sunset admitted with a slight blush. “Dad has been working for a huge company for years, and recently, he was promoted to regional manager for a new local branch. That’s why we had to move to Canterlot.” “Impressive,” Shimmer replied with awe in her voice. “Must have been hard to leave everything behind, though.” “Not really, to be honest,” Sunset said with a sigh. “I had been attending a private school back in Manehattan which focused too strongly on studies. I had many acquaintances I worked with for school, but I can’t help but feel they were all only using me to improve their grades, and I slowly drifted apart from everyone else I knew from my childhood over time thanks to how time-consuming my studies became. That’s why I wanted to attend a public school this time; I want to make some real friends.” She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked over to Shimmer’s sympathetic expression. “Sorry it didn’t work out.” Sunset smiled at her double. “Maybe not the way I thought, but I did find a friend.” ~*~ Sunset opened her front door and, with a movement of her hand, flipped the switch beside the door to bathe the foyer in light. “Home, sweet home,” she called out to the empty house as she entered, Shimmer behind her. “Hope you don’t mind the mess." Shimmer looked around the foyer. She had been impressed by the size of the house from the outside, and the inside certainly lived up to her expectations. It was much bigger than any foyer she had seen in the human world, at least regarding private homes. The foyer, and likely the whole house, was still mostly empty, with several moving boxes shoved against the walls, but she could imagine what it might look like in a week or so. Not far away from her stood Sunset, taking off her coat and her boots by the coatrack. Shimmer walked over and did the same. "Let me show you around and see where you can sleep," Sunset said. "It might still be a mess, but my own room and my parents’ bedroom are mostly set up. I'm sure they wouldn't mind if you sleep in their bed for now." Shimmer simply nodded and followed her upstairs. They first arrived at Sunset’s parents’ room, where Shimmer left her belongings for the time being. Afterwards, she followed her doppelganger on the tour through the house. Half an hour later, both girls entered the living room, the last stop on the tour and one of the few rooms Sunset’s mother had begun to decorate before she left. Shimmer had been utterly impressed by the whole building. It was by far the biggest house she had set foot in since coming to this world. "So, what do you think?" Sunset asked. "It's amazing! Compared to this, my apartment’s a rat hole." "Hey, for someone who came into this world out of the blue with nothing, your ‘rat hole’ is pretty amazing, too," Sunset replied with a playful poke into Shimmer’s side. She walked over to the couch in the middle of the room—one of the room’s few pieces of furniture—and sat down. When she noticed that Shimmer had not followed her, she looked over and found her standing in front of a shelf near the door, holding a picture frame in her hands. Shimmer noticed Sunset looking at her and looked away with an embarrassed blush. "Are these your parents?" she finally asked. Sunset couldn't see the picture itself from her position, but she recognized the frame. It was one she had bought herself and knew to which picture it belonged. "Yeah, those are my parents. We took that picture last year during a trip to the beach." She smiled at the memories, but that smile fell when she noticed how Shimmer was staring back at the picture, a small frown on her face. "Are you alright?" Sunset asked with concern. The question snapped Shimmer out of her daze. "Yeah. I just got a bit lost in thought, is all. Sorry about that." She put the frame back where it belonged and made her way over to the couch to sit down beside Sunset. "So, what are we gonna do now?" Sunset studied her doppelganger a moment longer, contemplating if she should get to the bottom of what was bothering the alien. In the end, she decided not to pry for the time being. She let herself sink into the couch and let out a deep sigh. "I know we have a huge mess to solve, but would you mind if we postponed plan-making for tomorrow? It's been a long day, and I would like to relax for now." She motioned to the television hanging from the wall in front of the couch. "We could watch a movie or something." Shimmer smiled and leaned back on the couch. “Sounds good to me. A few hours of laziness won’t make a difference.” Sunset returned the smile, grabbed the remote from the couch table, and turned on the television for a relaxing movie night. ~*~ The two girls awoke in the late morning after staying up late watching movies on television. After a small breakfast, they both sat back down on the couch. “So, got any idea how to start?” Sunset asked. She would love to offer something to help as well, but since she was new in town, she had no knowledge of who might be a suspect or who might be able to help. Shimmer sighed. “I might have a few ideas who might be behind Anon-a-Miss, including one possibility Princess Twilight pointed out, but I don’t think it would be wise to approach those suspects on our own. For now, I thought about going to Canterlot High and meeting with Principal Celestia. Unfortunately, I don’t know if she believes me or not. I didn’t meet with her during those few days last week I was still in school, but if she is on our side, she’ll be a valuable ally.” “Sounds like a plan. So, when are we gonna leave?” “It would be better to wait until school closes for the day to avoid trouble with other students. In the late afternoon, there won’t be many students around school grounds.” Without a better plan for the moment, the two girls agreed on waiting till later before moving out. They used the time to chat or watch TV. At about one in the afternoon, Sunset stood up and stretched her limbs. "I’m gonna get something to drink. You want anything?" Sunset asked. "Nah, I'm fine," Shimmer replied with a wave of her hand and watched as her doppelganger left for the kitchen. Staring at the kitchen door, Shimmer let her mind wander to how much fun she had had since meeting her other self. It was the first time since the Anon-a-Miss fiasco started that she really unwound, and she realized just how stressed out she was. She really needed that after everything that happened those past two weeks. Just a nice, quiet evening and morning with a friend. She was so lost in thought that she failed to hear the jingling of keys from the front door, the sound of said door opening, or the approaching footsteps. “Sunset!” Torn out of her mindscape, Shimmer stood up in surprise and turned around to face the door to the foyer, only to freeze instantly with her eyes wide open. A woman had just entered and called out to her, but before Shimmer could do or say anything, the woman had crossed the room and threw her arms around her. “I'm so glad that you’re alright, sweetie. I was so worried when your phone wouldn't connect. I expected the worst, but what a relief to see that you’re fine!” Shimmer tried to say something or to free herself, but the woman’s grip was just too strong as she pressed her daughter’s double against her breast. “Sweetheart,” a new, deep voice spoke out from behind the woman, “did you by any chance forget to mention that we had twins?” “Of course not, honey. We only have one daughter, and she’s one of a kind," the woman gushed without looking away from Shimmer. “I was afraid you would say that,” the man said, “because I'm even more confused now.” The woman finally turned her head around, only to see the man staring at the kitchen doorway. Following his gaze, she started, “What are you talking... about...?” They both stared at the very familiar girl that stood in the doorframe, staring nervously back at them with a bottle of water in her hand. “M-Mom? Dad?” she stuttered. The room fell into silence while the two grown-ups tried to wrap their heads around what they were seeing. The woman blinked several times to make sure she was not seeing things. “Wh-What the... How...” She looked down with wide eyes at the girl that was still in her grip. When she loosened her grip slightly, the girl managed to pull her face free and look up at the woman's face with a small, nervous grin. “Uh... Hi?”