//------------------------------// // Back-dorm Stitching // Story: Sunset Shimmer Hunts the Undead // by Rune Soldier Dan //------------------------------// Sunset’s evening didn’t get much worse on her return to the dorm, but calling in Redheart didn’t make it better. They watched from the window as her SUV careened into a handicapped spot, then as she paused halfway inside to barf on the bushes. “It’s cool, it’s cool!” Redheart waved off Twilight’s meek attempt at doorway interception. Her well-ordered bun was absent today, sending waves of stringy pink hair down each shoulder. “I puked out all the alcohol, sober as a rock now. Show me Celestia’s little delinquent.” Sunset winced, smiling nervously as steps and hiccups approached the bedroom door. She sat on the room’s only chair with top half stripped to her bra, revealing the ugly extent in the bright indoor lights. A raised purple welt as wide as her fist ran along her left ribs. Bandages covered the werewolf’s bite, but stained stickiness remained in the creases of her hand. She shivered. Hungry, worried. Cold in here without her shirt. Applejack moved before the shiver passed, pulling the quilt from her bed and draping it gently over Sunset’s good shoulder. “S’like Maud said, everything will work out fine. You hungry?” Another shiver, but this time the blanket caught its heat. “Yeah.” “I’ll fix you some soup, nice and hot.” Sunset beamed, drawing the same from Applejack. Not so cold, anymore. “Thanks, AJ.” Actually, it had gotten a little warm. Sunset scratched her cheek as Applejack departed, then gagged as an aura of stale beer heralded the newcomer. “Didn’t I–” Redheart interrupted herself with a moist belch, then resumed. “Didn’t I say something about werewolves being all kinds of bad news?” “You didn’t say not to hunt them,” Sunset replied. “I make bad choices!” Redheart threw out her arms. “I literally told you this. Be real, you asked me because I wouldn’t say no.” Sunset’s eyes moved to the side. “Yeah, maybe. I tried the Pies like you said, but only Maud was open. It was us or nobody.” “Story of our–” Another belch. “Story of our lives, kiddo. Us or nobody, and screw it, feels damn good to be the hero. Nothing quite like the high of being a ‘worthless mayfly’ – funny story, there – and teaching some undead bloodsucker a lesson in complacency. But anyway, speaking of shortened lives, is breathing giving you any pain?” Sunset touched gingerly at her bruise and winced. “No, not really.” “Good, it means we don’t have to go to a hospital. You probably broke some ribs but it ain’t like we can put a cast on them or anything, just ice and painkillers and take it easy for a few days. Gonna be important for that bite, too… got classes tomorrow?” “I’m skipping,” Sunset said softly. “Good,” Redheart said, hiccuping before and after. “Skip the next day, too. Be a teenager for once and stay home, eat Ramen, and play video games. Nurse’s orders.” Sunset gave her a wan smile. “Thanks, Miss Redheart.” “Jesus, kiddo, drop the ‘Miss.’ I spend most waking hours feeling old at thirty-two, I really don’t want that creeping into my bad-ass back-alley medic time.” Sunset mentally debated asking her to drop the ‘kiddo’ in exchange, then gave it a pass. “Sure. What about the bite?” Redheart cracked her back and gave a more restrained belch. “Let me take a look...” She leaned close and gently peeled back the bandage. “Oof, you’re headed to stitch city. Gonna have to scalpel these open first, too. Hang tight, I’ll wash up and get my kit.” Sunset cringed. “Are you sober enough for this? Advice is one thing, knives and needles are another.” Redheart shrugged, already on her way out. “I twitch when I’m too sober. Have a drink yourself, it’ll make things easier.” With hands washed and black medical bag over her shoulder, Redheart entered the bedroom and closed the door. Behind her, the others hovered worriedly – aside from Adagio, lounging on a chair with her phone, and Maud, who stood with the rest but could never be described as “hovering.” Applejack crossed her arms and frowned. “I really don’t like not being in there.” “It won’t be pretty,” Maud intoned. “Give Sunset her privacy.” “Privacy with a boozed-up surgeon?” Maud’s cold eyes met Applejack’s unflinchingly. “We Pies rely on Redheart a lot. She’s unconventional, but hunters have no ‘conventional.’ The important thing is that she’s effective.” Wallflower pushed her forefingers against each other, looking downwards. “Is she going to be effective at stopping Sunset from becoming a werewolf?” No answer came, of course. Wallflower’s habit of meekly accepting it fell by the wayside as she stomped her foot and repeated at a shout. “Is she going to be effective at stopping Sunset from becoming a werewolf!?” Everyone startled at the sudden reminder of her existence – except Maud, who calmly turned her gaze. “Probably. We don’t know what causes lycanthropy. Virus, curse, etcetera. But we do know it can be cured at a very early stage. Redheart will give her silver nitrate pills, and a wolfsbane compound to drink in water.” “Hang a tic, wolfsbane?” Applejack looked up sharply. “Ain’t that a poison?” Maud nodded. “A very serious one. But it is mixed with laxatives to help the body purge it quickly, so Sunset should only have chills, dizziness, and copious vomiting for a few days.” “Copious...” Applejack trailed off, then grinned painfully. “Per chance, back then at the house, was Limestone...” “Yes,” Maud replied. “We were fortunate Redheart left us with a supply, and also fortunate Limestone didn’t clog our pipes this time.” Applejack gave a long, low groan, and Maud finished. “There will also be copious diarrhea due to the laxative. And the silver will make it green.” Twilight jumped as a yellow hand slapped lazily on her shoulder, with Adagio grinning behind. “Twilight-Two, buddy, pal, I know we’ve spoken like four times but what say we have a girls’ getaway at your place for a few days?” “Don’t call her that,” Applejack grumbled. “And y’all could at least pretend to be concerned.” “The people who know what they’re talking about aren’t worried,” Adaigo said, capping it with a yawn. “Myself included, so chill. Come hang with Twilight and me. We can braid hair, watch movies, compare breast sizes, give each other massages...” Twilight reddened and laughed, but shook her head. “I’ll actually spend tomorrow here. I can afford to skip class more than you guys, and I’ll bring juice and soup. Someone should stay for all this to keep an eye on Sunset.” “Us’uns can tag in and out the day after,” Applejack chimed, cheering with the idea of productive action. “Me and Wallflower don’t go in until noon on Fridays, and I know Daj only has a morning class.” “Awesome, volunteer me.” Adagio tapped disinterestedly on her phone. “But sure, fine, whatever.” Redheart was good as her word. She scalped, cleaned, and now worked to sew the wound, all with a steady hand. It didn’t even hurt that much, and with a pharmaceutic cure in view, Sunset’s worries had changed. “Um...” She shifted, guilt warring on her face before letting it out. “Mom told me to tell Harshwhinny if I had a business problem. Not you.” “Figured.” Redheart’s words came out muffled beneath her medical mask. “It’s cool. Our little secret.” Sunset sighed hard and looked away. “Harshwhinny told me not to get involved.” “Whatever,” Redheart said. “Keep your head like that, I don’t want you breathing on this.” “But is she right? I mean, you’re the expert.” Sunset paused at Redheart’s chuckle, then resumed. “I used myself as bait. And an innocent! No expert snipers, no reinforcements, no back-up plan besides gunning it down...” Ice-blue eyes looked up briefly from their work, finding Sunset’s. “Yeah, yeah. Military snipers could kill it from a kilometer out, with SWAT teams in the wings… easy to fall into that thinking. But Sunset, if the government was involved, or hunting was a paying industry or something, Sour could have dialed a hotline and found help there. But there’s none of that. A SWAT team in your position would be wolf food right now, so what does that say about you? You made a plan, it didn’t go pretty, it could have gone better, and you won. Nobody died but the bad guys, and let me tell you a secret: your mom, Harshwhinny, the Pies, they would have planned things out better, sure. Maybe they would have gotten through without a scratch. But dollars to doughnuts say shit would have still come down to pulling triggers and hoping for the best. We just don’t have the equipment for anything better, and we sure as heck don’t have the training.” A loud hiccup interrupted, though Redheart held the needle still until it passed. “Cranky’s a vet, I guess, but look at the rest of us. Nurse, principals, teachers. Iron Will’s a failed entrepreneur, and Harshwhinny… heh, I’ll tell you later. So for that kind of people to say ‘no, Sunset, you’re too young and inexperienced,’ fuck it. Call if you need help. Be careful, be smart, and always, always, always call when you discover something important in case you get jumped on the way home.” Sunset chuckled, warming to the words. “Thanks, Redheart. I do want to keep at it, I really do. We already took down a gargoyle, ghouls, couple ghasts… the biggest problem until now has been finding time when everyone’s available. How does my mom get you all to put your social lives on hold long enough to hunt monsters?” “Hm?” Redheart eyed her stitching, then stood. “Oh, easy. We’re losers with no social lives.” She pulled off the mask and grinned. “Welcome to the club. I’ll stop by tomorrow, so keep at it with the pills and powder. You have a rough few days ahead of you.”