//------------------------------// // Little People Make Big Mistakes // Story: Care Root's Bizarre Adventure // by Ditherer the Fussbudget //------------------------------// Diamond Tiara It’s the day after it all blew up, and you haven’t even made it back home yet. In fact, you only came to school to put that off a few more hours. The morning halls of Canterlot High are just the same as always. Inside ｢Tin Cup Chalice｣, though, the mood is thickly dark. You can’t help but feel on-edge, or maybe that’s just all of the people watching you walk by. That used to be a good feeling, didn’t it? ”Hey! Spoon-fed!” a voice calls out of the mill of grumbling, and you ignore it. Ahead of you Silver Spoon, eyes glazed, doesn’t answer either. You reach your lockers, only six apart by pure coincidence. When you open yours, you realize it’s empty. Right. Another Freshman voices calls out. ”Where’s all our stuff?” It’s Rumble, the puny dweeb who’s always around Cloudchaser. Maybe her brother? You have no idea what happened to Flitter, she was still unconscious when you-- No, no need to think about that right now. ”The last time you woke up” is how you’ll describe it. Rumble’s insistent. ”Silver Spoon!” He walks up between the two of you, and she does a half-turn to look at him with one eye. Her body’s facing the inside of her empty locker, like she’s deliberating whether or not to climb in... He’s unperturbed. ”Where’s everyone’s stuff?” His hands splay open in a way you really want to mock. Your best method for handling stress has always been to make other people feel it instead. Silver turns away from him without an answer, unslinging her backpack. She’s a total robot today, and you don’t blame her. ”Hey!” The puke steps closer while she’s grabbing something out of it - and, before you can intervene, he shoves her against the locker door. It creaks with her impact, and she stares at him emptily. ”What did you do with our school supplies? Give it back!” Other voices start to agree with him. Once they do it loud enough, it’ll be impossible to stop. Between her fingers, something disappears, and then Rumble starts squeaking. His hands fly to his throat. Wait, is he choking?! You close the distance, but Silver gets there first. She slams a fist into his chest, and he splutters, throwing his head forward. The noises become muted as he bends it towards his knees, and then he gags and weakly spits out a small, pink eraser. Before he can bring his head back up for air, she’s got a grip on his collar. She pulls him back up the half-foot to eye level. ”Are you working for Sunset Shimmer?” She asks the question in a raspy just-awake kind of voice. Should you use your Stand to interfere? You tried calling ｢Pink｣ to you this morning, with no luck. In the moment, you try again, but your aura doesn’t budge. ”Wh-what are you talking about?!” he all but screams. She stares into his eyes like she’s trying to pull out his soul. All is silent. You really need to do something before she gets herself suspended. “Silv-” She lets go. His knees nearly buckle under him, and she speaks before turning away. ”Tell her if I see anyone on her side, I’m going to return the favor.” Then she’s staring into her backpack again, a little more there. You realize your heartbeat’s calmed down a little. Rumble recovers himself, and backs away; you feel a little bad for him. Everyone’s still got an eye on Silver in case she snaps at them. Some of them are already regretting not having their phones ready. When she slams her locker shut, loud enough to fill the hallway, they flinch and stop. She turns around and heads to homeroom, not even bothering to put the lock back in. Wordlessly, you walk after her. Last night... You’re sitting in the backseat of the car you left not long ago. You only woke up a minute earlier, being snatched up like a football and carried out, and you piled limply into the car without protest. You saw the body. Derpy’s driving, and Silver’s shivering next to you. And, in the passenger seat, Twilight Sparkle stares blankly through the dashboard. She’s speaking, but no one’s reacted. ”Sunset kept information on all of the Stand users. Anonymous shouldn’t be able to do that.” ”He did.” Derpy says, monotone. She has one eye closed to focus on the road. You realize you may be the only person in this car in a state to drive anything. At least you can process it. If they came for your family... ”No, it might have been... another Stand at work.” ”Who?” Both sisters ask simultaneously, and in the same tone. Twilight hesitates, and takes a breath. ”Well, she was using some method to learn about Stands people didn’t reveal. She knew about ｢Timbuk Three｣ a long time before Care ever used it...” She pauses to make sure she’s not going to be thrown out of a window, but everyone seems to be listening. ”A-and she theorized that if he used it too much, it would start to block happy things from happening to him. I never knew she took it anywhere, honestly I didn’t, but that must be why the Crusaders made him activate his power.” It starts to click for everyone in the car, but not quite. Whether for good or bad, you see what she’s talking about. You knew there was some “limitation” to ｢Timbuk Three｣, but never quite what. You try to help her the rest of the way. “Do you mean that they burned out a specific piece so this night would... end wrong?” Twilight nods a little. ”To stop him from ever having a happy memory of it.” ”...Is that why?” Derpy asks, not looking at her. ”Just to hurt him?” Twilight tenses. ”...Yes, it probably was. I-I’m sorry.” Trixie You’re sitting in a slightly waterlogged kitchen - fingers folded on a countertop, hair ratty, costume all around you. You're trying to get your bearings, and you haven’t slept since last night. To be honest, you haven’t slept since you passed out around the Shadowbolts. You were supposed to die. That’s what Care’s impostor told Derpy, what Derpy told you, what you didn’t dwell on before you were shouldering through unlit hallways next to her, trying to navigate. It was going to end in a big showdown, your group and the Rainbooms and the Dazzlings - except your group doesn’t exist any more. No one would call it yours, it’s Care’s, and he would’ve known that. Plus it wasn’t the Rainbooms, it was the Shadowbolts. And, although your ribs are killing you, you didn’t die. Nothing happened the way it was supposed to! You’re a magician, you can sniff out unexpected results. They’re everyday for anyone who loves the stage - and when magic doesn’t work, you can tell exactly why! Only if it works, you never know how it happened. Unless it’s very, very complicated... No, it can’t be. You haven’t sat down with Care or Derpy and talked it over yet, but... whatever happened here, it couldn’t have had too many moving parts. There were only a few groups, only three gems, only so many factors that could be manipulated. So where did everything go differently, what went wrong? It scares you that you don’t know. You lost someone without getting that information, and it scares you more to think of the alternative. Maybe this was all someone’s plan after all. Maybe the trick’s still going. Who benefits from all of this? Your arms are shaking from the elbows down, and your head bows a little, neck trembling forwards. This was so much easier alone! Behind you, a door creaks and opens. You don’t turn around. ”Trixie…?” he asks, as your head sinks even lower. ”What day is it? What happened?” “...” Last night... You’re driving back to Care’s house - or doing your best. The streets haven’t woken up yet, but you have to put some distance between yourself and... that. You need to pull over and breathe, your chest is constricted. It’s not true that you don’t have time. You take a turn at random and cut through unfamiliar neighborhoods, and then you realize you’re going fifteen over the limit. No one’s followed you that you can see, but you don’t trust your senses that well. Something just broke. The bullet’s redirecting itself, somehow. You won’t understand it until you reach home-base again, when Diamond texts you the details. It wouldn’t make a difference if you knew. There’s a sense of finality to the whole thing, and you reach out with ｢Abracadabra｣ for it. If you can make it impact you in something like a leg, you could survive - Silver would be able to take it out again, and you could take another hospital stay. But even as you do that, it ricochets again off the ground! Your ability pushes you backward on instinct at it hits the ceiling and then travels down for you. You make space between it and yourself, and keep going. It can be redirected, but it must lose momentum! How far can a bullet travel? None of these are even fully-formed thoughts, and yet you can see it deflect again, and head for Golden. Shouldn’t it be raining? Someone’s dead! The stars should flicker for a moment! You’ve faced the possibility of dying, the danger of it. But you didn’t have to worry about something like this! There’s no terror here, nothing heartpounding or dramatic to it. It’s just… real. Another inert thing, in an inert world. You pound the steering wheel once and blow a stop sign. A feeling of intense foreboding swells the more you see it move. It doesn’t even strike you as odd that you can watch the bullet in motion. Your perceptions can’t continue at this rate forever, though - trying to see in the dimness is hard enough. But you know what all of this is. Fate’s coming down on you, and there’s a gravity to this event that you can feel in your shoulders. So, perhaps, there’s only one real way to make a difference. You make a note of that silver flight-path, and then push yourself directly into it, so you can stand in front of the rest of your friends. Only to smack into something thickly solid. A tree? Panicking, your Stand pushes back the bullet a little further. How are you going to-- ”｢FINESHRINE｣!” Golden’s voice cuts through, as vehement as it’s ever been. Something impacts you, a deer. Thick antlers lift you up under your arms, the pain blocking out your attempt to figure out what’s happening, and then it charges forward, throwing you like a bull to the far wall. ｢Abracadabra｣ takes over, and the only sound you can hear is your clothing dragging against the concrete as you minimize the impact. When you’ve stopped rolling, it’s over. The bullet’s stopped zipping around. Golden Harvest is dead. When you finally reach Care’s street, you’re moving at twice the limit. The sleepy houses ignore you. His driveway’s at a right angle and sloping slightly downward, and you know you’ll never make it going like this, but you’re too angry to slow down. In fact, you speed up instead, and you lift, slightly, like being on a rollercoaster. “｢ABRACADABRA｣!” you scream the name inside of your metal box, rattling the wheel, taking a foot off the pedal. And then you’re on the driveway, oriented correctly, slowing down along it like a landing plane. When you stop, you finally look in the back, and find that he’s still unconscious. You suppress the urge to raise your voice more, and you get to work on getting him inside. Dernier Piege You don’t know who to blame for this. Anonymous? Sunset? Those are the only two that don’t hurt to think about. Sunset’s conveniently not at school today, and no one’s mentioned it, but the Rainbooms are around, at least a couple of them. ...Why? Why wouldn’t she just ask? You want to smash the desk you’re sitting in. Then the floor, probably, and then see how much further you can get in two minutes. How long until you’d reach the center of the Earth, just with your Stand’s fists? You don’t have any gifts with you. It’s not safe, but you really don’t care about safety right now. Well, no, you have one. ｢Spinal Tap｣ already brought you one of the shards this morning, not that you’d asked it to. And you couldn’t leave it inside the house, not after that. ...She got up early. You had stumbled in, bruised and deathly silent, and you sat in the kitchen while she woke herself up and waited for an explanation. Dad was still asleep, it wasn’t a workday for him - you still haven’t seen him yet. Silver let you do the talking, you had to. You were the... the oldest sister, now. And you lied, your little sister stood there and let you lie to your own mother. You lied because you couldn’t tell her about Stands, about everything that really happened, you couldn’t give any kind of synopsis. You told her that Golden was attacked, and at least managed to include it was Anonymous who did it. You leave out that you could’ve killed him. He looked like he was most of the way there already, but... you didn’t have the stomach, maybe. It was easier to say to yourself that he was a goner anyway. So long as you didn't have to do it yourself. She called 911, and she didn’t listen when you said that Golden was already done for. You had to give an address, had to lie that you were heading home from a party and you saw him on the road. You'd thought he needed a ride, until he pulled out the gun. Diamond was quiet as a mouse for all of this, but you could feel the waves of shame coming off of her. Silver didn’t speak either. You two still haven’t talked with each other. You don’t know if you can. It’s a thought you don’t even want to notice thinking, but you were always technically the oldest sister. The start of the family, the “Last Trap”. Golden was adopted when you were two, at the same time your mom was going to have Silver. It’s why she got that name. Catcher Pouch had loved the world with his traveling, and he gave it up in love for his wife. In exchange, both she and the world gave him a daughter. ’Les trésors.’ You don’t know why you’re here. If you could summon ｢Spinal Tap｣, you could probably crush that gem into dust in your bag, and then... what would happen? The whole game would be over, and they’d all have to leave you be. Or would ｢Timbuk Three｣ stop you, somehow? Would it punish you for trying to jump off of the ride? You don’t want to do this. You believed that there could be a happy ending to all of this, that it would all work out. Now you don’t know if you believe much of anything, any more. Class ends, students get up. It takes energy to lift yourself up and gather your things. You go to lunch, and don’t eat. Care Root When you get to school, the day’s halfway over already. Trixie stayed behind. She was clearly wiped out, especially after talking to you. She stayed up all of that time just to break the news to you. ｢Timbuk Three｣... It takes more effort to consciously ignore your power than it does to drive this car. You think you can still feel it, but you wouldn’t check if someone paid you. You just have to see Derpy, and find out what she thinks. And if she doesn’t want to see you again, you don’t blame her. This is what happens when you try to take things beyond your station in life, when you have to destroy the things that you love just to stay alive. You remember the battle under the lemon tree. Maybe he had a point after all. When you enter the school, it’s through the side. The doors aren’t typically locked, although you’re supposed to report to the front when you come in late. You can’t quite bring yourself to bother right now. It’s one more thing you might be doing wrong, one more way things can get worse for you, but after a certain point you get too much perspective to feel anything about things like that. You enter and the halls are full. Is it lunchtime? No, wrong direction, it just ended - which means you won’t be able to sit down and talk with her. At least you might be able to see her. You walk against the crowd, some people cutting off their conversations to look at you. Where, where…? You’re walking through ｢Tin Cup Chalice｣ when you see her a ways away. She’s talking to someone. Yeah, beside her is Twilight. They round a corner and leave the front hallway. What’s her next class? You’re not sure, you would usually split up just after lunch ended. You wade through the student body after her, and even turn the corner and continue, looking for another sign of her. But she’s gone. Diamond Tiara It's the end of the day, and you don’t really like the schoolbus, but you take it for anonymity’s sake. Right now it's better than calling for a ride. You know Care would probably drive you if you asked, but why bother him about it? Because you’d like him to be there, mostly. You’d like someone to be there, at least. When you arrive, your dad’s standing on the front porch. It’s a lavish porch, white and girdered, decorated by an unbroken sequence of gardeners. He’s in the same suit as always, and you’d hoped he’d still be at work. His expression isn’t one of worry, though. No, you’ve seen this kind of anger and disappointment before, just... never aimed at you. It’s the look he gives a person before he tongue-lashes them, but why now? You didn’t text him anything after you told him you’d be over at Silver’s. Did her mom call him? She didn’t seem like she was in a state to. She would’ve sent you home if she’d even noticed you were there, it was why you made no attempt to draw attention to yourself. You didn’t even eat breakfast in that house, you just caught what little sleep you could and left. Apprehensive that he knows something you don’t, you make your way past the gate. The cold’s becoming hostile as time goes on, and soon it won’t let anyone stay outside for long. He doesn’t shout at you as you head for him, but you don’t think it’s a good sign. Even when you get there he doesn’t say anything. Only his imposing aura keeps you from pretending not to see him and heading inside. It’s like... he’s waiting for you to start. “D-Daddy," you open diplomatically. ”Did I raise a thief, Diamond?” He asks. You don’t know what to say to that, but instinct tells you waiting to choose words will make you look bad. “What?” You have to shield your eyes a little. The sun’s already pretty low in the sky, and it makes it hard to look at him. His voice rumbles. ”I thought you were just spending time with your friend to get a little air and have fun. Those were the sorts of things I didn’t get much chance to do when I was your age. I wanted them for you. After your mother, I thought they would help you grow up like I couldn’t.” You try not to think about Mother. You never had a chance to know her. But... “I don’t know why you’re saying this to me.” There are a lot of things you could do to avoid being in trouble, especially with him, but you don’t want to think about those. Manipulating your way out of the situation is like stamping “guilty” on your forehead, and you haven’t even admitted to what he should be worried about yet. A cloud drifts in front of the sun. Belatedly, you see an unfamiliar car in the driveway. ”I know I wasn’t always there for you. I tried to be, but… I must have been too late. Just like I tried to get you a place in Crystal Prep.” Oh, ugh. You remember throwing a fit over that and barely even understanding why; you hadn’t realized that school was school no matter where you went. He hadn’t been willing to force the extra time onto his drivers when he could give you a spot in the same high school he’d grown up in. You hadn't resented it as much as other things he’d denied you - although, now that you thought about it, most of those were just as petty anyway. He finishes. ”...Is that why you took it?” “Took what?” He growls. ”Don’t play dumb. Why did you steal from those two girls?” “I don’t know what you’re talking about!” ”The ruby! Ms. Sugar Zap and Ms. Sunbeam want it back from you, and they told me where you were last night. I called Silver Spoon’s mother today just to make sure, and she told me one of her girls died while you were out!” Your heart falls out of your body. You feel like you’re either drowning or about to summon your Stand. Would that help, if he knew? He wouldn’t see it, but you could show it to him by using it, couldn’t you? In your shock, you summon it wordlessly, following that thought - but ｢Pink｣ doesn’t come when you call. ”Things are going to change today, Diamond.” Your legs shake. “D-dad-” ”I don’t want to hear it. You’re not leaving this house except to go to school, and you’re not staying over with that family any longer.” Not… S-Silver…? “But the first thing you’re going to do is take those poor girls to what you took from them, and apologize, and be glad you’re not in any more serious trouble!” He points to the door. Stunned, you open it, fighting tears. What’s the way out of this? He wouldn’t believe you if you just told him what was going on. Should you have told him sooner? Wait. Ruby? You get out of your own head enough to realize what he’s talking about. You didn’t bring it with you to the factory. That was why things didn’t work, the gems weren’t complete, and it was… all because of you. It's as you complete that thought that you open the door and see them in the entryway. Two girls in Crystal Prep uniforms, both shades of blue, both with smug eyes behind neutral mouths and crossed arms. Shadowbolts. Have they hurt him? No, if they did there would be some sign. They lied instead, probably to keep from dealing with his security, or his lawyers. Even if they killed him, your dad would own their souls from beyond the grave. So what’s their endgame? Walk away with the piece of the gem or get rid of you while they’re at it? You haven’t met them before, or any of the other Shadowbolts. In fact, the only people who have seen your Stand are Anonymous and Silver - so, with any luck, they don’t know about it yet... Your mind races as the door moves away from you. Your dad’s holding it open, now, and your mind races, but you pull your jacket tighter around yourself and step inside. They look far, far too well-rested compared to you. Weren’t they all fighting for their lives as much as you were, last night? ”Sugar Zap” uncrosses her arms and gives you a tight, intentionally fake smile. ”Miss Tiara.” Then she extends a hand, which you don’t take. ”Diamond.” Your father says, behind you, and then you do take it. The contact is surprisingly cold given how long you’ve been outside, but brief. You’re trying to think of what to do. Denying that you have the gem is pointless, they have some way of tracking them, but you need to get them as far away from your dad as you can manage. With each breath you take, that purpose crystallizes in your mind. Get them away from him, get them away from him... but, also, keep them from the gem. You have to disrupt things somehow. ...｢Pink｣? It doesn’t appear. You don’t strain for it yet, you don’t want to waste it if it does appear, but you wonder if you've used it up somehow, hit some limit. Maybe you’ve made one mistake too many. Sugarcoat It was difficult deciding which of the four of you would arrive here. Originally you were going to break in, but you realized it was suicidal. From what you could tell, even Sour wouldn’t be a great match against Filthy Rich. Part of you wanted to deck him in the face, grab the gem and jump out of a window, but you ignore that feeling. The rest of you understands that a good lie, however distasteful, can sometimes make the difference. Really, it was Sunny’s idea. You brought her along because both of you could incapacitate him up close, if you absolutely had to. ｢Nails for Breakfast Demo｣ is like a mild tug on your muscles, reminding you of who you have to switch with. Of course all three of your teammates, and now Diamond… Unfortunately Mr. Rich didn’t take your hand when you knocked on his door twenty-five minutes ago, and you haven’t found a good opportunity to offer it to him since. Sunny’s hiding her detector, because if he saw it he would think she was a spaz, but it turns out you may not need it after all. Filthy is going to stay downstairs and wait for Diamond to grab the gem, and both of you are going to go with her. Even though she doesn’t have a Stand of her own, she’s going to try something. She can’t be gullible enough to take something like that seriously, but she’s taking you up the grand staircase towards her room. You keep your Stand ready, Sunny stepping softly behind you. Diamond ｢Pink｣! Come on... ｢Pink｣!! You only feel a slight stir. Does it need to recharge?! It’s been a long walk to get to your room, but if you make them suspicious you have no idea what they’re going to do. Things aren’t good. If you could call someone… you can’t think of anyone who would be able to help. Even if Silver answered, even if she could get here, it would be too late. When you come to the door, you push it open. Your room’s all done up in pink, and it’s looked the same for the last five years. The door to the balcony’s as open as you left it the last time you were here. Posters of passing interests litter the walls, things you’ve kept for sentimental value. A high-definition photo album sits on its own corner endtable. It’s been your sanctum all your life, and now they’re tromping inside it. They’re even wearing shoes. You don’t look back at them as you climb under the bed, feeling for it. ”Why did you try to hide it?”One of them asks. You don’t know which one, but you don’t respond to them. Finally you snatch up the gem and emerge on the far side of the room. “Here it is.” You stand and hold it up so they can see it - and then, at last, you see it too. It’s not a shard, it’s… the whole thing. The rest of the pieces must have gravitated to this one somehow. They think similar thoughts, and edge closer, but it’s pointless. You knew what you were going to do as soon as you entered the room. You turn to the balcony and run. And then, inhaling on the way, you vault over the railing. Sugarcoat Shit. You run over to the balcony, peering down. With these ceilings it’s more than a two-story drop, but the lush lawn is empty of anything remotely her color. There wasn’t anything for her to grab onto, either. So... she’s a Stand user. Why weren’t you briefed on that, then? The Crusaders should’ve let you in on that, it couldn’t have been a secret! It wasn’t like there were users they didn’t know about! Except the Sirens, of course, but they were special exceptions. You swap your little finger with hers to make sure she’s still alive. ...Yeah. So she’s not suicidal. Sunny’s looking for some kind of prognosis from you, so you turn to her. “She’s alive somewhere. She’s not stupid, she wouldn’t leave us with her father alone.” ”Not even for the gem?” Before you can answer, something black and flaking appears in the center of the room. It’s small, but clearly a Stand, a few times larger than yours. It looks like it’s dying, parts of it evaporating like ash being spread into the air, but it zips toward you and throws a punch. You switch hands with Diamond and block it. After a single crack of force blows you backwards, it fizzles and disappears again. For your part you stumble and catch yourself on the railing of the balcony, and it doesn’t reappear. Footsteps pound away down the hall, and that’s when you realize the door’s closed. Diamond Tiara You’ve got to get as far away from this house as possible. Find Trixie, find Care or Derpy, just... find somebody! You can’t let holding onto this fate be a mistake! You race for the front door and realize the problem by the time you reach the stairs. They won’t catch up to you if you run, because you know the layout here better than they do. But your dad looks up from the front door, where he’s standing, and sees you - alone, and carrying a large gem. You had to make it life or death to use your Stand the last time, and now it continues inside of you as a persistent ache. Like shrapnel, maybe. You haven’t had to deal with pain much in your life, you don’t have a real measure for it, but a month ago, this would’ve been cause to go to your personal doctor immediately. Now, it propels you a little further. He steps forward from the door, noticing your expression, and he seems ready to chew you out. You have to prove to him that these powers are real, and then maybe he’ll listen! You take another deep breath, and then jump over the stair’s railing. The fall is exhilarating, and just like before you try to focus on it - not on the splat at the bottom, but the feeling. You close your eyes and summon ｢Pink｣. Then you feel it next to you, ready to smash that action with its fist - but its beetle-black fingers crumble as it pulls back its arm. One fist is already gone, the other disintegrates in the swing. Come on... Then the arm starts to dissipate. The bright eyes flash danger signals, and then the rest of it unravels. Your power is gone, and you don’t have time to do anything but clutch the gem to yourself as you fall. ”｢Johnny Cash｣!” The crash doesn’t hurt, much. You wonder if you're in shock, or if you died automatically upon smashing your head onto the floor, but then you open your eyes and see only floral-patterned white. You’re on a stack of mattresses. And in front of the door is your dad, hand stretched out in front of him. Did he just…? The Shadowbolts are approaching, you can hear their footfalls echoing in the entryway. Swallowing your relief, you leap off of the beds and run towards your dad. ”You have a Stand?” You ask, and he doesn’t answer for a moment, but it’s clear that he does, so you hurry up. ”So do I! So do they!” You point back the way you came, thank goodness they’re not here yet. ”They’re trying to take the gem for the group they work for! They almost collected them all last night, but they couldn’t because I kept this one here. It’s the only reason we’re all still here now, or else I don’t know what would’ve happened, and they’re trying to take it from me so that they can do things right the second time!” Once you started talking you can’t stop, and on your final words they’ve already arrived, rushing down the stairs as fast as they can. ”Diamond… I didn’t want you to get into that. I thought it would be nothing but trouble for you.” His tone is sad, almost mournful. The universe has condensed to the two of you. “I had to! My friends need me! It was wrong not to tell you, but it wasn’t a mistake to help them!” Those words solidify in your mind for a moment, like a brief echo. ’Wasn’t a mistake.’ You're right, it wasn’t, was it? For some reason, that thought ignites something in you. It collapses a house of cards, or maybe superglues it into place. He seems to feel it too. You push down the urge to try for the hundredth time to summon your Stand, and instead, he summons his. The mattresses explode into coins, pelting the girls as they reach the ground floor. One of them, the one with white hair, puts up a hand that turns pinkish-red and started glowing lime-green. With precision it catches coins in front of her face, letting her see enough through her spectacles to edge closer, like walking through a blizzard. Your dad creates a stungun, which appears curved around the contours of his open fingers. Whatever its power is, that has to be the coolest Stand you’ve ever seen. She’s still all business, unphased. ”We only want what’s ours back, Mr. Rich. If you make any other moves to attack us, I’ll be happy to replace wherever you’re hitting with your daughter.” To demonstrate, her neck becomes pink, and your own prickles. He doesn’t back down, but he doesn’t fire, either, and the chaos of loose change dies down around you. As the last of the coins roll to a stop, it all goes quiet. She continues. ”You’re wondering if you can attack faster than I can activate my power. You can’t. She’ll get second-degree burns, or worse, and she might even bleed out if it’s in the wrong area. Your chances aren’t good.” The one with multicolored violet hair steps forward, and he doesn’t move. She speaks, her voice lilting compared to the other girl. ”If I use my ｢Royals｣ on you, I don’t know what will happen. All I can say is that you probably won’t come out as a whole human being. I don’t want to do that. Tell your daughter to give us the gem and let us be, and we’ll leave you both alone forever.” He doesn’t respond for a moment, and she puts a hand to his arm. When he speaks to you, neither of them move. ”Run, Diamond. Go to Silver’s family if you can.” ”Diamond, if you do that, he’s not going to make it," the one further away says, and just like that the world centers around you. Didn’t you used to wish for this feeling, this attention? Were you really that stupid, once upon a time? Hell, aren't you still? That thought echoes again. ’It wasn’t a mistake’... “...Okay.” You step forward, in front of your dad, holding the gem out in one hand. It drops eight inches before she grasps it in her free palm, and breathes a small, almost invisible sigh of relief. And then you punch her in the gut. She doubles over, almost dropping it, and lets go of your dad. Now that her face is in range you hit her again, bloodying her nose and your coat, angry as hell. Helping Silver and her family was the right thing to do! Going in after them wasn’t a mistake! It was what anyone would’ve done, should’ve done! IT WASN'T A MISTAKE! She lunges back up for his arm, and you can feel the power of her ability churning towards you. But with a sudden crack of pink, you knock her arm back, jarring it in its sockets. ｢Pink｣ came back to you! Except, now that you have an eyeful, it doesn’t look right. The black’s completely flaked away. It’s really pink now, pink lemonade pink, and the name doesn’t feel right any longer. ”Not one more movement from either of you.” The dry, deeper-voiced girl says. ”Toss the gem to Sunbeam and lay on the ground if you want to live.” Your dad freezes when he looks at her. She was carrying a pocket knife, and now she has it to her throat - your throat. You can tell from her face that she’s not bluffing, and your dad doesn’t do anything, his Stand must not be able to stop her. Everything's frozen as your feeling of triumph fades into the background, as you stare at her and try to think of some solution. Your power makes you different from a regular person being threatened at knifepoint! You're not helpless, not if you can just think! There must be something you can erase... No. No, there isn’t. Even if there were, if you got out of this by undoing something you’ve done before, you’d be betraying the path you walked up to now. This moment with your father, this feeling of growth… it’s not a mistake. It's not a mistake, and it’s not what you should fix! ”｢Pink ACT 2｣!” Your Stand flies for her as she jabs the knife forward, but it’s smaller now, and faster without that shell to weigh it down, and its punch isn’t aimed at her directly. After a single strike, it dissipates, and the pink leaves her neck completely. ”Now, Dad!” you shout. He nods, and pulls the trigger. A burst of crackling wires connects with a very confused prep-schooler, and then she loses control of her motor functions and slams to the ground in a tangle of motion. You feel nothing, but while you watch your Stand flies over to where 'Sunbeam' is trying to stand and delivers another solid punch to her head. And then, just like that, you and your dad are standing together, over your incapacitated enemies. You realize that you have a lot to talk about. Somewhere... Arms folded behind a head, mouth chewing on a strand of blue energy-drink hair like a piece of straw. ”Man, this is boring.” Green eyes squinting, arms folded. ”Weren’t you one of the ones we were fighting?” A look out of the corner of an eye. ”Huh? Yeah, I guess. Wasn’t really about you, though.” ”Just my sister’s boyfriend?” A mean smile, with teeth. ”Tch. He might’ve kicked my ass, but he’s nothing big. Just plan Z.” ”Plan Z for what?” Bored now. ”Saving the world. It’s a good cause. Glad I’m still living on a little down there.” ”Yeah, getting your ass handed to you.” Silence, mulling. ”Sugar’s gonna do alright.” ...Shrug. ”What’s the world need saving from, anyway?” ”Not this one. Uh… you know what I mean. It’s just about putting things back in place.” ”Sounds like you don’t know either.” A shooing wave. ”Pff, fuck that. My girls are gonna save Equestria. Just you watch.” ｢To Be Continued｣ Stand: ｢Pink Act 2｣ User: Diamond Tiara Ability: The user can ‘erase’ any action a person has taken in the last two minutes from causality, causing time to carry on as if they had simply done nothing instead of that particular thing. Erasure does not undo the effects on organic tissue except through undoing the effects of other Stands, and even then cannot bring the dead back to life. Only works once per two minutes.