//------------------------------// // Chapter 11 // Story: Memory Lost and Found // by BoredAuthor817 //------------------------------// Trixie let out a stretch. After hours of sitting at a desk, it felt good to let everything out. That, added with the prospect of lunch, made for a very good feeling. She walked to her locker and began putting away her items from the morning. “Hey, Trixie!” came a joyful chime. Trixie turned to see Lavender Lace and Fuchsia Blush walking up to greet her. She waved to them. “What's up, girls?” “Oh, nothing much” replied Lavender, “What about you? Haven't seen you around much lately.” “Been busy.” “A new magic act?” Fuchsia smiled, excitedly, “You know you can always count on us to assist.” “Not a magic act, per se” Trixie grinned, “I did, however, finally master the Magician's Exit.” The girls let out a squeal of excitement. “Still has a few squeaks,” Trixie continued, “but mass improvement.” “That's great!” smiled Lavender, “But, seriously? What have you been doing? We saw you running around with Sunset Shimmer the other day, and figured something was up.” “Yeah,” Fuchsia looked concerned, “that girl is all sorts of magic bad news.” Trixie held up her hands. “Believe me, I'd tell you if I could.” Lavender crossed her arms. “Okay, be that way. Just be careful. Sunset's got some pretty weird and powerful magic surrounding her.” “Oh, ye of little faith!” Trixie smirked, “It's nothing the Great and Powerful Trixie can't handle.” The show of confidence didn't help Lavender's concern. “Just promise us you'll be careful.” “Hey,” Fuchsia pointed down the hall, “Who's that over there?” “Hm?” Trixie craned her neck around her locker door to see. “Oh, that's Wallflower Blush. Strange girl. Claims we've known each other since the third grade.” “Huh,” pondered Lavender, “I was with you in third grade. Don't remember her.” “Any relation of yours?” Trixie asked Fuchsia. “Not that I'm aware of.” Lavender looked perplexed. “Why I she just standing there staring into her locker?” “That's not her locker.” Trixie frowned, “That's Sunset Shimmer's.” She stepped around the other girls and made her way up to Wallflower. “Um, hey, Wallflower.” “Hi.” It was a barely audible whisper. Trixie forced out a friendly smile. “Whatcha doing?” Wallflower seemed greatly confused. “I... don't know. I thought I was going into my locker. But...” Trixie crossed her arms. “This isn't your locker.” “I see that... now...” “Are you feeling okay?” She reached out to the gardener, but the girl shrunk away. “I... I think so... I had better get to my locker.” She bolted past Trixie and ran down the hall. “That was odd” said Lavender and she and Fuchsia rejoined Trixie. They had witnessed the whole interaction from Trixie's locker. Trixie closed and locked Sunset's locker, in deep thought. “Yeah, it was...” --- “I just witnessed the weirdest thing with Wallflower” Trixie said, setting her lunch tray on the table. She saw the collective stares of the Rainbooms. “What?” “Nothin'” replied Applejack, “Only that we thought she went home this mornin'.” “She wasn't feeling very well” Fluttershy explained, “Last we saw her, she in the office waiting for her grandfather to pick her up.” “Well, that didn't happen” Trixie took a sip of her drink, “Because I just had a chat with her in the hallway.” “What was she doing?” asked Rarity. “She was in Sunset's locker. Not doing anything. Just staring there. It was kinda creepy.” She let out a shudder. “Who all knows Sunset's locker combination?” “Well,” replied Twilight, “we all do.” “We have the combinations to each other's lockers” Rainbow clarified. “I don't need locker combinations” beamed Pinkie with pride. “Hey, girls!” came a chipper shout. A lunch tray plopped onto the table and a new chair was added. “Um, Wallflower?” Rarity hesitated, “What are you doing?” “Just enjoying lunch with my friends, of course!” Wallflower laughed, “We are friends, aren't we?” She looked at the blank expressions around the table. “Why am I getting an odd feeling of deja vus? “You're not the only one” said Rainbow. “Well, of course we're friends!” smiled Pinkie. She jumped up from her seat and wrapped her arms around the green girl, “We're not gonna let what happened last weekend come between us. It's always nice to welcome a new friend!” “At this rate,” Applejack grumbled into her apple, “we're gonna need a bigger table.” “New friend?” Wallflower asked. “Say, Wallflower,” Applejack quickly changed the subject, “that's a pretty impressive garden you've got there.” Wallflower's face lit up. “You really think so?” “Yer talkin' to a farmer after all” Applejack grinned, “I may tend fruits and vegetables, but a garden's a garden.” Wallflower blushed. “Thanks.” She nibbled lightly on her sandwich. “So,” she said, “any word on how Sunset is doing? Are they any closer to getting her memories back?” “No change, I'm afraid,” replied Twilight, idly prodding her food. “No update from the princess since last night, either.” “Well, she and Starlight Glimmer are pretty bright. So, I'm sure they'll come up with something.” She shrunk back slightly when she saw the puzzled glances around the table. “Who's Starlight Glimmer?” Trixie asked. “That's what I want to know” replied Rarity. She leaned in closer. “Wallflower, darling, how do you know of Starlight?” Wallflower froze. “I... um... I...” She put her hands to her head, “I don't know!” “It's okay” Fluttershy reached out to the green girl. “No!” Wallflower yelled, “It's not!” She jumped up from her seat and ran from the cafeteria. The table sat in dumbfounded silence. “See?” Pinkie cried, gesturing in the general direction Wallflower had run, “Acting. Weird.” Rainbow was the first to rise from her seat. “We'd better keep a close eye on here for the rest of the day.” "You do that," said Twilight, pulling out the journal, "I gotta report this to the princess." Trixie couldn't take being ignored any longer. “Who is Starlight Glimmer?” --- Thankfully, the afternoon went on without incident. Despite their best efforts, though, Wallflower seemed to have successfully avoided the Rainbooms. “I know Princess Twilight said for us to keep an eye on her,” Rainbow said, “but, for a girl who complains so much about being invisible, she certainly does a good job at not being seen.” She and Fluttershy walked towards the statue base where Rarity and Twilight were already seated. “I just hope we can find her soon” said Rarity. “Me, too” added Twilight, “If what we witnessed at lunch is any indication, she may be in serious danger.” “You really think Sunset's memories are in Wallflower?” Fluttershy asked. “Everything seems to add up” replied Rarity, “She was there at the time, and in close proximity to the stone.” “Well, she ain't in the buildin'” Applejack said, approaching the group, “Pinkie and I checked everywhere, even Sunset's old hidin' spots.” “It's like she vanished!” added the party girl. “No sign of her on the soccer field, either” said Rainbow. Trixie came from around the side of the school building. “The garden's a bust as well.” “Well, she didn't come this way” Rarity said, “Twilight and I have been sitting out here since the last bell.” Twilight pondered a bit. “That all is assuming Wallflower didn't skip class. With her having Sunset's memories, it's very likely that she's acting like Sunset as well.” “But, Sunset doesn't cut class... that much.” Applejack rolled her eyes. “Yer one to talk, RD.” Rarity turned to Pinkie Pie and Trixie: “You two seem to be the masters of disappearing and reappearing. Have any ideas?” Trixie took a firm stance and crossed her arms, insulted that she would be asked to divulge the mysteries of her craft. “A magician never reveals her secrets.” Pinkie only shrugged. “For me, it just happens.” “Oh, thank goodness, there you are!” came a shout from down the street. The girls looked over to see Wallflower Blush running up the sidewalk. “Girls!” she panted, “I need your help!” She stopped before the group and help up a set of keys. “My keys won't work on my apartment door. And the landlady won't let me in. She even threatened to call the cops on me unless I left. The nerve! I've been nothing but a good tenant for years!” “Calm down, Wallflower,” Rarity put a hand on the girl's back, “Why do you want to get into your apartment?” “It's Ray!” Wallflower cried, “I haven't fed or watered him in days! And it's well-past his last feeding day!” She fell to her knees and sobbed, “I'm a horrible parent!” “Okay,” Trixie whispered to the other girls, “who is Ray?” Fluttershy made her way to Wallflower and gently took the girl's hands. “Sun—Wallflower, Ray is fine. Applejack and I went to pick him up Monday night. He's at my house.” Wallflower sniffled, “R-really?” Fluttershy smiled and nodded. “Why don't we sit down for a while. You seem exhausted.” She led Wallflower to the statue base and set her down. “How's that headache, sugar cube?” Applejack asked. “Not much better.” Wallflower wiped her nose on her sleeve, “But, I also don't want to go home.” “We understand, darling” Rarity rubbed Wallflower's back, “Just know we're here for you. So, just try to relax.” “But I can't!” Wallflower hissed, “I can't find my geode, my journal... any of my stuff!” Twilight quickly, and stealthily, pushed Sunset's journal further into her knapsack. “Do you have the key to the yearbook room?” Trixie asked. Wallflower dug into her pants pocket and soon produced a key on a camera key ring. “Well,” Rarity smiled, “that solves that mystery.” “I'm not quite sure how I came to have it” said Wallflower. She handed it to Rarity. “You had better take this. You're the vice president after all. With Sunset gone...” A blank expression fell over her face, “I...” “Shh...” Fluttershy cooed, “It's okay. Just let it go.” The other girls had moved off to the side where they could talk privately. “This ain't good” Applejack said in a low voice. “You're telling me” replied Rainbow, “Wallflower's gone, like, all Jekyll and Hyde.” “More like Jekyll meeting Hyde” Twilight looked over her shoulder. “Can't anything be done?” Trixie asked. Twilight shook her head, “Wallflower belongs in this world. Princess Twilight doesn't want to bring her to Equestria unless she absolutely has to. For now, all we can do is help her feel comfortable. We need some way to monitor her overnight.” Pinkie's eyes lit up. “Does that mean...?” Applejack let out a sigh. “Yes, Pinkie.” --- Surprisingly, Wallflower's grandparents seemed unconcerned about their granddaughter spending the night at a stranger's house. In fact, they seemed overjoyed at the idea. Her grandmother even went so far as packing Wallflower's overnight bag and dropping it off at Pinkie's house. “Wow,” Twilight looked shocked, watching Wallflower's grandmother drive away from Pinkie's bedroom window, “even my parents aren't that excited for me to get out of the house.” “I don't really like leaving them alone” Wallflower said, sorting through her bag. Her tone hinting that she wished not to elaborate. “Okay,” Pinkie checked her texts, “Trixie just picked up the pizzas. Sodas are in the fridge and, if someone could help me with the snacks, we should be all set!” “I've got ya, Pinks,” replied Rainbow, “right after I beat Applejack.” “Ha!” the farm girl retorted. She pressed the buttons on the video controller with great determination, “Fat chance!” Rainbow let out a growl. The race was almost over and, while she had the lead, Applejack was coming up fast. At the last minute, Applejack used her power-up, coming up and surpassing Rainbow, crossing the finish line first. “What?” Rainbow yelled, “Oh, come-on!” She threw the controller down and got up to join Pinkie Pie in the kitchen, grumbling as she went. “...and I thought playing against Sunset was bad.” “Sunset says I'm worse” Fluttershy said, rather confused, “I don't understand why.” Applejack let out a laugh. She turned to Wallflower and offered up the free controller. “Wanna give it a try?” “Um...” Wallflower said, uneasily, “I don't really play video games.” “It's pretty easy. Come on, we can run one of the practice tracks, if you want.” “Okay...” Wallflower sat down next to Applejack. She listened intently as Applejack explained what the different buttons did and how the game worked. “Ya think ya got it?” “Um... yeah...” “Okay” Applejack smiled. She opened the menu and began browsing through the various levels. “Since yer new ta this, and our guest, I'll let you choose the track.” She handed her controller to Wallflower. Wallflower looked at the different races. After sorting through a few, she finally came across one she liked. Applejack gulped when she saw Wallflower's selection. “Yer sure about that, sugar?” Wallflower nodded slowly, as if she, herself, was unsure. “Isn't that Sunset's favorite track?” Twilight whispered to Rarity. Rarity looked up from painting Twilight's toenails. “Yeah,” she replied, “she plays it almost all the time.” The two watched from the bed as Wallflower chose her car and character. “Those are Sunset's usual choices as well.” With an animated creature yelling “Go!”, the race was on. Applejack tried her best to navigate the twists and turns, but even this level was a bit too advanced for her. Wallflower, on the other hand, commanded her car with ease. “Wow!” cried Fluttershy, as Wallflower completed a tricky maneuver, “Go, Wallflower!” “Who's side are you on?” Applejack yelled. She fought to keep control of her vehicle, but an in-game cheat had made the road slick. She let out a low growl as her car and character fell off the edge of the track and into the abyss. With her human opponent far behind, Wallflower focused on reaching the end. She swiftly took out the remaining A.I. characters and crossed the finish line, effectively winning the race. “Woot!” she raised her hands in triumph. She looked over to Applejack and blushed, “Er... sorry, Applejack.” “It's okay,” Applejack said with a light chuckle, “Just glad to see ya havin' some fun.” “Hey, guys,” Rainbow poked her head in the doorway, “Trixie's just arrived with the pizzas and—Woah! Sweet score!” Wallflower turned to the screen. A blinking line showed her where she had landed on the scoreboard. She was third. All the other high scores were held by “SunShim”. “Well,” Applejack nodded, “that there spot is yers, go ahead an' put yer name in.” Wallflower hesitated before finally entering “WallBlush”. “Cool!” smiled Rainbow, “Now, come on, my pizza's getting cold.” --- Several slices had already been handed out by the time the girls reached the table. Partway through dinner, Trixie who had seated herself towards the center, began showing off her repertoire of party tricks. “You're pretty good” Fluttershy clapped, “How long have you been doing this?” “Oh, about since first grade” Trixie had to think about it, “I know I had perfected a few tricks by the time I was in the third grade.” “Trust me,” Wallflower groaned, “you couldn't get her to stop.” Twilight raised her eyebrows, “You two have known each other for that long?” Trixie face turned bright red. “Er...” She didn't want to bring up again the fact that she didn't remember Wallflower. “We've been in every class together since the third grade” Wallflower said, fiddling with her pizza. “So,” Rarity said, “you two also went to the same middle school?” “Not exactly” Trixie said, “Our school was K through eight.” “Well,” Applejack took a bite of pizza, “we already know Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were at Canterlot Middle together. Who else went where? I attended Everfree Academy myself.” “That's a tiny school, isn't it?” asked Rainbow. “Yep, but Granny liked it 'cause it was close to home. Lotsa farmers send their kids there.” “I went to Crystal Prep” Rarity coughed. She smiled sheepishly at the stares from around the table. “Maybe I should clarify” offered Twilight, “Crystal Prep has a middle school and a high school. I also went through their middle school.” “HA!” Rainbow burst into a fit of laughter, pointing a finger at the fashionista, “I can just imagine you in a stuffy, conforming, uniform!” Rarity chose to ignore Rainbow. “Odd,” she pondered aloud, “I don't recall seeing you there, Twilight. Though, now that you mention it, I did hear rumors of this really smart girl who took all private classes in the basement.” “It wasn't the basement!” “If you were already going to the middle school,” said Fluttershy, “why did you change to CHS?” Rarity let out a slight chuckle, “As my parents put it: Crystal Prep has several reputations. One of them is less... um... desirable.” Twilight slumped. “I know what you mean.” “I guess we all kinda do” Applejack fiddled with some chips, “but you two didn't turn out that way. Especially you, Twi.” “How 'bout you, Pinkie Pie?” Rainbow said, “Where did you go before CHS?” “Right here” Pinkie smiled, “I was home-schooled. Same with all my sisters.” Silence fell over the dinner table. Trixie gave the moment ponder. “That explains... so much.” --- With full stomachs and all loaded-up on sugar, the girls retired to Pinkie's bedroom. Despite it still being early, amidst the video gaming, nail painting and just general goofing off, the girls soon, one by one, nodded off to sleep. The one last awake, Twilight took the moment to send a message off to her Equestrian counterpart. She grabbed her knapsack and snuck out to the kitchen, so not to disturb anybody. Seating herself at the kitchen island with a glass of water, she opened Sunset's journal to a blank page. She tapped her pen for a moment, thinking of the words to send. “Dear Princess Twilight,” she began. She couldn't ever think of a better opener, and that's how Sunset normally started her writings. So, Twilight figured why not follow suite. “Hope Sunset is still doing okay. “Things are pretty much the same over here. We've brought Wallflower in for a sleepover at Pinkie Pie's. She's sleeping now. But, it's becoming more and more evident that she has Sunset's memories. I fear that they may be dominating over her own as she's acting more and more like Sunset Shimmer. “I'm worried of what she may do if her memories and Sunset's collide. “Please write back soon. “- Twilight Sparkle” “Hey, Twilight” said a soft voice. Twilight shot up to see Wallflower leaning in the door way. Twilight's heart sped up. 'How long has she been standing there?' She swallowed down her fear, “H-hey, Wallflower. W-what are you doing up?” Wallflower let out a stretch and waltzed over to the refrigerator. “Got a little dry. Guess I didn't drink enough with dinner.” She froze as she opened the door. “Wow... they really love their whipped cream.” “No,” Twilight laughed, “just Pinkie.” Wallflower around dug a little. Finding only soda, she settled for some tap water. “So,” she said, “what are you doing up?” “Oh,” Twilight tittered, closing the journal and covering it as best she could, “I have a heard time sleeping. Brain just keeps going, you know?” It wasn't a complete lie. She often found herself up late thinking about various things. Only after a couple hours of wild brainstorming, would she finally fall asleep from sheer exhaustion. “Oh... I guess you smart people are like that. So many ideas... and stuff.” Twilight only gave a broad smile. It quickly went away as the journal vibrated and lit up beneath her. “Not now!” she hissed under her breath. The buzz didn't miss Wallflower's attention. She looked to the other girl with a raised eyebrow. “What was that?” Twilight's heart raced. “That? Oh! That was... um... my phone!” “That didn't sound like a phone” Wallflower frowned. She stepped closer, “What are you hiding.” “Nothing!” Wallflower pushed Twilight aside. “My journal!” she gasped, “You had it this whole time?” “Wallflower, wait!” “What have you been writing to Princess Twilight?” “Wallflower,” Twilight pleaded, “don't!” Wallflower turned to Twilight. “Don't what? Read my own journal?” “You don't understand!” “Oh, I think I understand perfectly.” Wallflower flipped open the journal. Twilight, in a moment of desperation, did the only thing she could think of to do. She jumped Wallflower and the two fell to the floor. The girls struggled on the cold tile before Wallflower got the upper hand. She pinned Twilight down, pressed a knee her stomach, and enclosed a hand upon her throat. Wallflower raised a clenched fist, “I never thought you would turn on me!” Struggling for breath, Twilight managed to let out one cry for help. In a short time, the weight was lifted from her and she could breath again. She scrambled backward, 'till her back made contact with the cabinetry. She leaned back, catching her breath, Rarity and Fluttershy were swiftly at her side. On the other side of the kitchen, Rainbow and Applejack firmly held down a kicking and screaming Wallflower. “Why?” she demanded, tears streamed from her eyes, “Why would you betray me? After all we've been through. I thought we were friends! Twilight, we've been through so much together!” “I never did anything with you!” Twilight shot back. Only after realizing what she had said. She covered her mouth with her hands. Probably not the best words to say to someone who had your best friend's memories. Wallflower stopped her thrashing and looked to Twilight in dead silence. The sadness in her eyes. Twilight had to turn away. She had seen the same expression in Sunset Shimmer. This time, the look was even more heartbreaking. “Twilight,” Wallflower's voice broke, “please. Girls, we're friends, right?” A new wave of sobs hit her. “Why is it no one remembers?” “Uh... Pinkie...” Rarity whispered. Pinkie already had the journal. “Yep, on it.”