//------------------------------// // Shopping Spree // Story: Two in Exile // by River Road //------------------------------// Sunset stared down at the young man impassively for several seconds before rolling her eyes with a huff. “So we’re doing it this way, again?” “Please, Miss Shimmer. I have a reputation to uphold.” Thornton raised an eyebrow, still smiling confidently. “It’s quite easy. We have something you need, so you’ll give us what we want.” Sunset glared at him for another moment before her mouth twitched up and she quickly turned away. “Stars, you’re incorrigible! Is everyone in your family like this?” “Most of them have some quirk or another. It’s what makes life fun. It’s not like we’re trying to be nameless drones.” Thornton smirked, eyes sparkling with mirth as he watched her. “Now, shall we discuss the terms of your surrender?” Sunset sighed and jerked her thumb back at Twilight. “I need proper identification for my sister. Before Monday.” She raised an eyebrow. “Is that going to be a problem?” Thornton rubbed his chin, frowning lightly. “It might be? It’s not impossible, of course, but I’m definitely going to have to pull some strings and grease some palms.” “Uhm… excuse me?” Twilight piped up from behind Sunset, looking at them nervously as she rubbed her arm again. “I’m sorry, but what’s going on? Are we in trouble?” “You didn’t tell her, then? Good to hear you still keep to the important rules.” He turned to the younger girl, giving her a wide smile. “Well then, little lady, let me enlighten you. I am a part of the Mesis family, an interconnected clan of people working key positions all throughout the country if not the world. We specialize in business dealings of all kinds, giving people what they need for the right price without having to go through all the… more legal channels..” Twilight’s eyes widened slightly and she stepped back. “You mean we’re doing something illegal? Am I going to be a criminal now? I don’t wanna go to jail!” She looked between the other two people in the room in panic, shrinking down. “Well now, it’s nothing quite that horrible. If you don’t tell, nobody will even know.” Thornton kicked off and rode his chair back behind the desk, turning to the PC set up there and quickly hitting a couple keys before pressing enter with a flourish. “Maybe this here will convince you.” Music began to filter out of small speakers hidden in the corners of the room right under the ceiling. Sunset blinked, then groaned as she watched Thornton get up and step forward in time with the beat. “Oh you gotta be kidding me…” Thornton smirked, moving around Twilight before pulling the nervous girl in close and guiding her towards the photograph corner. I admit my family's not pure and innocent And some folks might even call me, well, a crook But you'll find in modern times Things just aren't black and white And besides I always liked the grey-green look Don't you? He pulled back with the last word, leaving Twilight on the seat as he picked up a camera and went to work snapping several shots. Before the girl had fully managed to rub the spots from her eyes he was already back at his desk, plugging in the camera. What we do might sometimes seem to you like magic I assure you, it is skill and earnest work And milady, please don't laugh But we do it on behalf Of the people who have nowhere else to turn He turned back to Twilight, picking up a couple of pictures of other people as props as he made his way through the song. Those poor unfortunate souls They're lost, off course One feels buried under problems One is running out of time So we help them, But of course Those poor unfortunate souls It's sad, but true They need money, they need favors It's what makes this world go round And we have both Yes, we do He pulled Twilight over to Sunset, getting an annoyed roll of her eyes from the older girl as he popped up between them, putting an arm on their shoulders each. Now this service has its price We've had bailers once or twice So we raked 'em – just a little – 'cross the coals But I know you'll understand If we take dollar, dime and cent From you poor, unfortunate souls~ Sunset waited a few beats after the music faded out, then raised an eyebrow at him. “You done now?” “No sense of drama! Or theatre!” Thornton threw up his arms in mock exasperation, then turned to Twilight again. “What about you, little lady? Do you understand what our business is about now?” “I, uhm… kind of? I think so, at least.” Twilight tilted her head, a mildly confused look on her face. Sunset smirked. “By the way, Thornton, congratulations. You just butchered a Disney classic for the one girl in the whole nation who’s never heard of The Little Mermaid.” Thornton froze, his eye twitching a bit before he turned around. “Bah! What in the blazes are you teaching the kid?!” Sunset bit her lip, then snorted and giggled, following him as he stomped back to his desk. She leaned over with a smirk, giving a mock pout. “Oh no, did I hurt your precious wittle feelings? Or did I hit your masculinity when I criticized that fabulous little broadway offshoot?” Thornton glowered down at his screen. “One day I’m going to stop holding back against you and you will be helplessly outmatched in this battle of wits.” “Sure, you keep telling yourself that.” Sunset smirked, then straightened up again. “But as fun as this is, we’re here for a reason. Did you actually get a decent picture during that little stunt of yours?” “What do you take me for?” Thornton huffed and glanced over at Twilight. “So, how old is she?” Twilight blinked, then straightened up a bit at the sudden attention. “I-I’m se-” “She’s twelve.” Sunset cut her off. “Looks a bit younger, sounds way older, it evens out.” She shot Twilight a glare to make sure the girl got the message before turning her attention back to Thornton. “Uh-huh, whatever you say.” Thornton gave a disinterested shrug. “I assume the address is the same as yours… date of birth?” They both looked over at Twilight again, who squirmed under the attention. “Uhm… forty-fifth of Spring.” “So that would be the twentieth of…” Thornton froze for a second before he resumed typing. “Huh… that’s interesting.” Twilight shot an unsure look at Sunset. “Why? What’d I say?” Sunset rolled her eyes. “Nothing important, I’ll tell you later. It’s just a coincidence, Thornton.” “I’m sure it is.” Thornton muttered, then shook his head and spun his chair towards a printer as it started to work noisily, pulling a sheet of paper out as soon as the machine let go of it. He held up the paper, showing a colored print of a child’s passport. “There we go. If I can’t get the real deal to you in time, you can just say you’ve misplaced it and give them this. It’s not really the important part anyway.” Sunset made to reach for it and quickly pulled it away. “Ah ah ah, what did I say? Payment in advance, please, I know that you have it.” Sunset sighed and reached into her jacket’s inner pocket, pulling out a small silk pouch. She carefully shook out a clean-cut ruby, holding it between two fingers. “This should cover everything and then some. Deal?” Thornton took the gem, carefully turning it between his fingers with a light frown. “...I’m sorry, but I need at least a coin with that. Not that I don’t trust you, but neither me nor you are expert jewelers. You’ll get the rest on your account, as always.” Sunset blanched, staring at him. “You… what?! You can’t be serious! This is a solid ruby!” “I said I’m not an expert, not that I’m blind.” Thornton rolled his eyes, dropping the print-out on the desk. “Do you have any idea just what you’re asking us to do? The papers aren’t the problem, I could fix those in a couple hours if I had to. But you need a paper trail, a digital one. And since you need it by the end of the weekend, I will have to get a bunch of government workers to do something for me before they leave for the weekend. Family or not, do you have any idea how difficult that is?” He shook his head, taking a deep breath before holding out his hand. “The gem and one coin. Like I said, you’ll get what’s left over to your account.” Sunset glared at him for a moment, then grumbled and reached into her jacket again, pulling out a gold coin. “One coin… And I get the stuff Twilight needs as well as a grand in cash.” She narrowed her eyes. “And don’t give me crap about how that’s not enough, I checked before I came here. The value of gold went up again.” Thornton glared at her, ignoring the coin to keep up their stare duel. After a moment he slowly cracked a smile, however, grabbing Sunset’s hand to shake it and relieve her of the piece of gold. “Always a pleasure to do business with you, Sunny-jam.” Sunset groaned, then glared at him. “Can I make this 900 bucks and a punch to your face?” Thornton grinned, flipping the coin once before catching it. “Sorry, a deal’s a deal. And you really should cut down on those Japonese comics, they’re making you violent.” “Implying that I ever wasn’t.” Sunset smirked, her leg twitching and making Thornton flinch. “Heh, still got it.” “Uhm… Sunset?” Twilight walked up to them, looking between them and fidgeting nervously. “I’m kind of confused… Are you two friends? Because you’ve been acting all mean with each other, but you’re smiling? I mean, sometimes at least.” Thornton grinned and moved forward to put an arm around Sunset again. “Are you kidding? Sunny Smiles and me aren’t just friends, we’re practically besties.” Sunset grimaced like she’d just tasted curdled milk. “Sad as it is, he’s technically right. I haven’t really put much effort into… socializing. And loathe as I am to admit it, Thornton is fun to talk to, in small doses.” She turned her head to glower at him. “And you’re going to delete any recordings of me saying this, or it’s not the shins I kick you next time.” “Awww, you’re no fun.” Thornton didn’t even try to look disappointed, pulling away and prancing back to the desk to open one of probably several hidden compartments, pulling out a bundle of paper bills and counting off one thousand. “But as much as I enjoy our banter, I do have a business to run. I’ll send someone over with the finished ID on Sunday, if I can.” He swept around Sunset, pushing the bills into her pocket and pushing a surprised Twilight out of the room ahead of him. “I’m sure my minions can help you with the more mundane items on your list.” Sunset pulled out the wad of bills again to count them, walking after them back into the public area of the shop. “You mean your employees?” “Potato, potahto.” Thornton chuckled. “I’ll let them know to put what you buy on my tab, so try not to buy out my shop. I’ll see you around, Sunny-bunny.” Sunset growled, shaking her fist after him as he laughed and ran towards the back of the shop. “One of these days someone’s gonna put you in the hospital for that, and it’s probably gonna be me!” ~~~~~ Sunset stared up at the massive building of the Upper Canterlot Mall for a moment before turning her head to look down at the girl next to her. “Now, remember what I told you?” “Don’t gape or freak out, don’t run off, don’t ask dumb or obvious questions in public.” Twilight recited and Sunset had to raise an eyebrow at the factual tone and neutral face the girl was keeping up. “Good. Human malls are, quite frankly, completely overwhelming. I don’t know how humans manage to just take them in stride, because I still have trouble doing that.” She shook her head. “Anyway, I don’t think anyone will actually bat an eye at some little girl getting excited about toy stores or whatever… but seriously, don’t run off. It could take hours to find you, and I really don’t want to have to let them call you out over the P.A. systems. Oh yeah, they got speakers everywhere, so don’t freak out if there’s suddenly announcements coming from the walls or ceilings.” Twilight blinked in surprise, then frowned and took up her neutral expression again. “I am treating this as a scientific study. I’m going to learn more about this native culture and I’m not going to let myself get overwhelmed by some lights or noises. As long as I don’t draw attention from everypony, I mean everyhuman-” “Actually, they just say ‘everyone’ or ‘everybody’. There aren’t really any other sentient species to distinguish from.” “Right, everyone then.” Twilight took a deep breath, then let it out in a huff. “Can we just go in and get this over with? Besides, you kind of oversold these malls. I mean, ‘a small town’s worth of commerce crammed into one building’? It’s doesn’t look anywhere that big.” Sunset smirked, taking Twilight’s hand and moving towards the entrance from where they’d paused by the side of the parking lot. “Sure, you keep telling yourself that when we get in. It might just work.” The automatic doors slid open as they approached and Sunset led Twilight inside, feeling the girl grip her hand tighter immediately. The mall was rather empty for an early Saturday afternoon, which meant that they could move without fighting their way through. Humans in all shades of the rainbow were milling about and Sunset could spot at least three cliques that together could maybe bring up enough brain for five minutes of engaging conversation. She spotted a flash of purple curls in one of the groups and rolled her eyes; ten minutes then, maybe. Feeling Twilight press into her side mercifully distracted her from having to think about Rarity. The filly had actually managed to somewhat keep up her poker face, pressing against Sunset while trying to look like she wasn’t trying to hide. It was hard to hide her shivering from Sunset, however, or the fact that Twilight was clinging to her hand hard enough to make the girl’s knuckles turn white (or light pink, at least). Sunset forced down a scowl, reminding herself that Twilight wasn’t as old and mature as her, and that even she herself had barely kept herself from finding a place to hide the first time she had come here. Instead she gave the hand a light squeeze to get Twilight’s attention. “Come on. You wanted to get this over with, yes? Just try to ignore everything else, it gets surprisingly easy after a couple minutes.” Twilight nodded quietly and kept herself pressed to Sunset’s side as they navigated the mall, staring around at everything with wide eyes.Sunset did her best not to keep them in the middle of the crowd for too long, slipping them into the first clothes store she saw and letting go of Twilight’s hand once they’d reached the section for girls of whatever the little girl’s approximate human age was. “Alright, I’ll get you everything you actually need while you… look through the shirts or something. Don’t break anything and don’t make a mess and everyone should probably ignore you. If you manage not to cause any more chaos you can pick some things you like, too.” Sunset lightly pushed her towards a circle of shirt hangers. She was not going to have the kid actually try to pick whole outfits for herself; from what she’d seen even actual human kids her age weren’t trusted with that, so she really didn’t feel bad about any perceived slights in that. Hopefully looking at all the glaringly colorful things they tried to sell children would keep the kid busy for a while. ~~~~~ “Can I have this one?” Sunset didn’t even look up from where she was comparing skirt lengths and sizes. “Is it one of those funny shirts?” “Yes! It’s-” “Is it still going to be funny in five minutes?” “...” “You’re going to thank me when you’re older. About five minutes older, in this case.” ~~~~~ “How about this one?” “Pinkie Pie wouldn’t wear that and I’ve seen her cosplay an epileptic attack.” “...so if Pinkie Pie is a bad example and she wouldn’t wear this, it’s a point in its favor, right?” “Nice try, but no.” ~~~~~ “Here, try these on. Changing booths are over there, you know how curtains work. Hop hop, we have a bunch of these to go through still.” ~~~~~ “...is that Nyancat?” “...” “Nyyyooooooot in my house…” ~~~~~ “Another o- AUGH! My eyes!” “See? The second one wasn’t that bad.” “It burns! And sparkles!” ~~~~~ “Why do I even have to wear these?” “Because running around without underwear is the fastest way to get just about every kind of attention we don’t want.” “It itches. And pinches.” “You’ll get used to it in a few days. Be glad you don’t have to wear a bra yet. And that you don’t have any fur under it. Because for some reason humans do get fur in the worst places, Harmony knows why.” ~~~~~ “What did I say about Nyancat?” “It’s Taco Cat. That’s different.” “...fine, I guess. Now go change into this outfit, I need to know if it fits.” ~~~~~ “How does this…?” “Oh right, zippers. Ponies don’t use them for obvious reasons. Here, let me help you.” ~~~~~ “...” Sunset stared down at the shirt that simply said “*YOU’RE”, nodded once and patted Twilight’s head before turning around again. ~~~~~ “Wait, a second, where did you even get that?” Sunset blinked as Twilight came out of the changing booth again. “This store doesn’t even sell lab coats, Twilight. Why did you even get that?” Twilight huffed and straightened up, pulling the little clean white lab coat closed over her chest. “Science always finds a way. Besides, I think it suits me, thank you very much.” “Science always finds a way. Besides, I think it suits me, thank you very… wait, how do you know my name?” Twilight paused and blinked. Sunset blinked. Twilight blinked. Sunset slowly turned her head to look from Twilight to the taller Twilight standing behind her in the same type of labcoat, then turned it forward again and closed her eyes, rubbing her forehead with a long-suffering look. “Well, horseapples.”