6:30 A.M.
Instinctively I squeezed back, even though the embrace was digital. There was little divide between the real world and the digital one when it was just us. I was also chirping up a storm to match NotABug's.
—You were right last night,— I sent.
—About what?— NotABug asked.
—Waking up to snuggles and chirps being good.—
"You're awake," Rainbow Dash said from behind me.
I wasn't even aware it was NotABug in control until she turned her head and leaned back against Rainbow's chest.
"We both are now. Today's the big day," NotABug said.
"Last night was a big night, and really sweet of Rarity. Thanks—I mean it."
I was bubbling with chirps, but I couldn’t just leave my appreciation of her words at that. Using my magic I brushed down Rainbow's back and began playing with her hair. Practice with dressmaking was paying off when it came to gentle and fine touches of my magic.
"I think she heard you, and I agree. You have no idea how much she dislikes loud and noisy cars."
Rainbow's arm reached over NotABug's shoulder and hugged her chitinous body.
"Yeah, no. I know exactly how much she hates fast cars. That's why it meant so much. Maybe she didn't look at my car with the right mindset before, but she called it beautiful, and I believed her," Rainbow Dash said. "It was pretty amazing."
—You totally need to kiss her for that,— NotABug sent.
I agreed, and when her nudge came, I rolled around in bed and kissed Rainbow. None of us left the bed for quite some time.
7:12 A.M.
Far from being drained by my morning's activities, I was infused with confidence, strength, and more than a little love energy. I slipped from bed and looked up to examine my destroyed pillow. I needed to solve that problem, but not today.
Yawning, I flicked back my mane from my face and turned to look at Rainbow. Things in my belly tightened, and I couldn't stop from dancing to unheard music on my way to the shower.
Shake Your Tail, particularly when it was Rainbow who might be watching, was now my favorite song to dance to. Of course, when we'd written and performed it, none of us thought we'd ever have our own tail—well, maybe Twilight did.
I finished my shower, climbed out, and was working on drying off when Rainbow slipped into the bathroom behind me. She seemed a little tired, but she had a big grin on her face and bent down to kiss me.
"There's billions of other people in the world who would recoil away if they saw me, Rainbow. I still can't get over how lucky I am—and NotABug is—that you never gave up."
Rainbow used her hand to rub at the base of my horn, something she'd learned made my knees wobble a little—just like they were now.
"You thought I was gonna stop chasing you? Rarity, sometimes there's just a connection. I felt it with you, even when you completely ignored me. NotABug was a surprise, but I feel it with her too. It's how I knew we were all meant to be together. It felt right."
"You, Rainbow Dash, are a hopeless romantic," I said, "And it's adorable, flattering, and somewhat amazing. Of all my friends, you were the one who believed in love at first sight."
She walked past me and climbed into the shower.
"It was easy. I didn't have to have faith, I'd felt love at first sight. I could believe it because I had proof it existed. That's what Twilight's always on about—scientific method. Every experiment I performed—mostly just staring at you and feeling giddy—just confirmed it."
"I'm sure that makes sense to Twilight in some scientific manner, darling, but to me it's simply romance of the highest order. I love you more than words can convey."
Just thinking about her made me chirp both digitally and in the real world—my wings were almost a constant symphony of sound. A thought occurred to me, and a few searches later I found the word I was looking for. Stridulation. It didn't sound as nice as chirp, but I guess there needs to be a more scientific verb for every action.
"Pretty sure you convey them pretty good. So what do you need me to do today?"
I continued stridulating with wanton abandon while I looked around my closet for clothes. Okay, the verb wasn't terrible, but I still preferred chirp. Chirp embodied the short and fast translation of the act, an instant and rapid emotion compacted down into a small packet. An emoji of sorts, but one far preferable to regular emoji.
Dragging myself back to the conversation at hand, I contented myself with some happy chirps at Rainbow's willingness to go along with all my crazy (to her) ideas.
"I need two stunning assistants to help me in the store. I'm sure we'll be busy on the first day, so that means showing everyone who visits your inner beauty with a layering of external beauty."
Rainbow poked her head around the corner of the bathroom door, her hair's wetness showing that she was technically mid-shower.
"It's saying things like that, that will get you wet hugs."
Tempting as it was to say something to coax her out for a hug, I instead just batted my lashes at her.
"We need to actually get ready at some point. We did spend quite a few minutes—ahem—otherwise involved," I said.
I admired my buggy self in the mirrors, then set my imagination free to find what I'd wear for the biggest day of my career. A ballgown? A business suit? Maybe something more frilly to show off?
I'd scarcely spent ten minutes processing what to wear, when I heard some surprised and alarmed chirping coming from the living room.
Buzzing my wings in alarm, I brought up the cameras in there before even reaching the door of our bedroom.
"Rainbow! The egg's hatching!"
There was nothing else for it, so I nudged and prodded mentally at NotABug until she sent me a sleepy and confused chirp.
—Egg's hatching,— I sent.
NotABug's chirping echoed around my head as I ran down the hall to the living room. Byte was already there, leaning over the egg and gently lifting back the first pieces of broken shell.
A crack sounded as a tiny black snout poked a hole in the egg big enough to stick their head through.
"Hello there. Do you want to come out?" I asked.
The softer, background chirping in my head was NotABug sending low-level data to our newest nymph. A few milliseconds after that, I heard our daughter's first little digital chirp—it was joined by everyone present.
—Hello?—
The new ID didn't surprise me, and I used my magic to gently break back more pieces of her egg so that our littlest girl could start to climb out.
Chirping surrounded us as I leaned in to brush my snout over the newborn. She smelled spicy and exotic, faintly of ozone, but mostly she smelled of changeling. I hadn't realized we had a smell before, but I guess my brain just blocked it out as a background scent.
"Wow. You're my mommy?" the new nymph asked.
I felt Rainbow at my side, lean in with her arm over my withers.
"We all are. Rainbow, NotABug, and myself," I said.
It was easy to gesture to Rainbow and myself, but NotABug needed me to nudge at her digital ID until she chirped out.
—Oh! You're in here too? I thought this was just me and NotABug,— the new nymph sent.
—We're not all here. Rainbow can't connect here very quickly, nor can most humans, but all us bugs are,— I sent.
"Okay, I'll talk like this so she can hear."
"That's wonderfully considerate of you, darling. Now, there's something important we have to do—you need a name," I said.
Byte, surprisingly, let out an excited chirp. When we all looked at her, she blushed.
"I-I was thinking, what with today being Mom's special new-boutique day, she should have a name that has something to do with sewing," Byte said.
NotABug nudged me, and I happily gave way for her to take control. She shimmied a little as she took over.
"Did you have something picked out, Byte?" NotABug asked.
A bunch of encouraging chirps rained around us as Moon Dancer (carrying Bitwise and Beta) entered the room.
"Well, I was thinking Bobbin. It kinda fits our theme, and is related to sewing," Byte said.
"Bobbin?" Bobbin asked. "I like it!"
I chirped along with the chorus, and squeezed NotABug in a digital hug.
—If you're not careful, we'll be laying another egg today,— NotABug sent.
—Well, at least we'd be down to one a day, or so,— I sent.
"I'm going to go get dressed, then I'll make your breakfast," Rainbow Dash said.
Standing back upright, Rainbow spared one more look for Bobbin and then ran down the hallway. I have to admit, I enjoyed the sight of Rainbow leaving far more than I used to. Not that I was limited to just NotABug's glance as Rainbow left, as the security cameras proved a delight sometimes.
"Why's everyone awake so early? What time is it?" Lyra Heartstrings asked.
I focused on her face and saw the bags under her eyes. Clearly she'd been up late talking with Moon. Pushing aside the strong instinct to rebuke Moon Dancer from being up too late, I sent a message to Lyra's phone.
—It's 7:33. Had anymore thoughts about my offer?— I asked.
Lyra froze in place, scratched at the back of her neck with one hand and reached for the pocket of her jeans with the other. She pulled out her phone painfully slow and read the message.
"Why don't you just ask me out loud?" Lyra Heartstrings asked.
—Because I'm not in control of my body right now. Strange, but I think you can pick this up. There's two of us in my head, and it's NotABug's turn at the wheel,— I sent.
Hesitating with her phone, Lyra shrugged her shoulders and walked into the living room.
"It's way too early to be thinking this hard. Hi, NotABug was it?" Lyra Heartstrings asked.
NotABug chirped and turned to look up at Lyra. Bobbin clung to NotABug’s neck—supported by one of NotABug's forelegs.
"Good morning. You're Lyra, Rarity and Moon's friend?" NotABug asked.
"Yeah, that's me. Rarity was trying to hook me up with a job. She said you need someone to work on a front-end?"
—I thought it would be good to have a human coder handle that, since neither of us are exactly experts in human usability,— I sent NotABug.
A very affirmative chirp came from NotABug, leaving me to turn my focus to the online world. My first check was on the AI code running the firewall response. It confirmed there were a few attacks overnight, none of which were from Windigo. I transferred the logs locally and continued my morning tasks.
ChirpNet itself had seen an influx of users, which was very good. I located the feature request page NotABug had put up for it and—after filtering away all the things that were just silly or not worth any time—flicked through the entries looking at things people wanted.
They weren't all silly, but when a user wants a way to completely automate birthday greetings, or another that wanted to have a heuristic detection for when friends grabbed their phone and strobed the screen, I just can't see that being an important feature. Though, the second one had promise if it just locked the phone.
One was fairly simple, or so I thought. They wanted a way for other code to talk to our server. An API. I spent the better part of the next half an hour studying how to build such things, and by the end of it I was almost more confused about them than when I started.
I stretched out mentally, hugged NotABug, and chirped at all my girls.
—You're done with your work?— NotABug asked.
—I barely even got started. Users of ChirpNet want an API to connect to it and interface through it. I don't want to expose our one, and spent the whole time researching how to make something that will be secure and fast.—
—Oh! You found the requests section then. Yeah, I kept putting it off, but if you want to work on it, I'll leave it to you. I passed Lyra's information on to Coco, she's going to see about getting paperwork drawn up to hire her. She's clever!—
—Lyra, or Coco?—
NotABug chirped at me in laughter.
—Both, but I meant Lyra. She knows a lot about this for a pure human.—
—She's spent a lot of years learning it. How was Coco?—
—Miss Pommel was really nice! She's been looking into my finances, and the first thing she did was give herself a raise and said she was going to get headache meds. I think she was joking.—
I couldn't keep from giggling mentally at the image. Turning my focus to the real world (through NotABug's eyes) I found her gazing into Rainbow's eyes as she used her magic to do Rainbow's makeup.
—She probably was, but she deserves it. Did she have anything else to say?— I asked.
—She's making the company a privately owned corporate entity, with each of us as shareholders. She sent congratulations about Bobbin, by the way.—
That got a new rush of chirps from me. I quickly flicked through the camera feeds, only to find Starling sitting on the couch with Bobbin on her lap. She may be our soldier, but she wasn't just a soldier.
Was forming attachments to everyone going to be a constant thing for me? Is this really how changeling queens work? It wasn't that I minded, but forming familial bonds with everyone is going to—
Taking a mental moment to count to a thousand slowly, I let go of the silly issue. Of course I cared about everyone, they mattered to me.
—So everyone will hold a share. I like that. It's very… family oriented. Much better than Suri's need to be in control of everything personally,— I sent.
—Rainbow's makeup is almost done. You just need to do her lipstick. It's time for your big day, Rarity.—
NotABug's nudge to put me back into control came just as I realized Rainbow was kissing me. I kissed back and was building up a good chirp when she pulled back. I had to fight the urge to lean forward and kiss her again.
"Slow down! You have to get ready still," Rainbow Dash said.
Arching my spine, I stretched and used my magic to apply Rainbow's lipstick.
"Darling, I'll smudge any and all makeup—and redo it—when and where I wish. Now, I was thinking something floral. I'll be spending most of the day remaining human, so it needs to match my pale skin."
I walked over to the mirrors of the closet and turned left and right, calling fire to restore my human guise. While I pondered what cut of dress to create, I heard Rainbow move behind me. When she came into sight of the mirror, I could see her eyes glued to the mirror.
Exploring my thoughts on nakedness, I could readily confirm that I didn't want to be human and naked in public, but with only Rainbow present, I could ignore all the taboos of society.
"What do you think?" I asked.
"If you're going floral, you might as well go with something exciting underneath. Red, lacy, and covering you just enough from thigh to neck to make you absolutely delicious."
A little flicker of flame and I was clad just how she suggested. A red one-piece teddy that supported me and covered me in the ways such underwear would. I ensured there was a large patch of white belly showing.
"And for a dress? I liked the idea of something on my shoulders, but scoop necked so that I could show some things off for anyone who cares to look."
Rainbow Dash's hands ran down from my shoulders, over the sides of my chest and down to my hips.
"Then you want something to cling to your hips, flaring out into a full dress and up to support your bust. Like you said, a scoop neck will let more than a hint of what's underneath show, but it should show."
Hearing fashion ideas come from Rainbow's mouth made me go a little weak at the knees. Going out for a drive in her car was definitely going to be a regular event. It took more flame to form up my outfit. A vivid rose-red formed the body of the dress down from my bust to my hips, and from there down it was a sea of fabric that worked to show off a brightness that shouldn't be possible with regular dyes—because it wasn't possible.
If my clothing was only limited by my imagination, then I would cheat as much as possible and hope no one wanted to buy a dress exactly the same. Another flicker of fire, then, and I had something that would actually be possible to make.
"What was wrong with the first one?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"If someone asks me to have a copy of my dress made for them, I can't very well tell them 'Those colors are impossible to dye into fabric,' can I, darling?"
Rainbow barked a laugh and looked into my eyes over my shoulder. Drat but the way she looked at me made me want to faint onto a couch.
"You've probably got a point there. It doesn't mean you can't show off your fantastical creations to me."
My heart, or hearts (I really needed to talk to Twilight about how my anatomy worked), fluttered as I spun around to face Rainbow. She was still taller than me—which had been on purpose as I liked having her taller than me—which made me look up into her face with as broad a smile as I could manage.
"You weren't always this into fashion," I said.
"Nope, but when my brain finally got around to telling me that all the cute things you wore were fashion, that's when I realized it might be something worth looking into."
"If I didn't have a boutique to open, I'd ravish you right here and now," I said.
I was shocked at myself, but also a little proud for being the one making the move. Speaking the absolute truth to friends should never be frowned upon—Applejack had taught me that.
Rainbow kissed me briefly enough that I hoped we didn't ruin her lips. It took a few moments of careful inspection before I judged them okay. Well, better than okay, but if I spent too long focused on her lips, I might kiss them again.
"We should go and get breakfast," I said.
"You know, hearing you talk like that has been a dream of mine for a while."
Turning for the door, I couldn't help checking the cameras to watch Rainbow walk after me. In the dress I'd made for her, her walk was a symphony of movement. She was an athlete, but Rainbow Dash could wear a dress if provoked—and wear it well.
Byte was already in the kitchen eating her bowl of muesli—still in her normal changeling form. There was a sense of chirping coming from my daughter that led me to believe she was doing something quite intense online.
"Good morning, dear," I said.
Byte looked up from where she had been using her own green magic to feed herself, chirped loudly, and rushed over to us. Green fire enveloped Byte mid step, and she fell against me with a hug that I gratefully returned.
"I didn't stay up too late!" Byte said.
I squeezed Byte tight and kissed her cheek. All my chirps had to be digital ones, but I ensured her input buffer was nicely packed with happy bug noises.
"You're a big girl, Byte. I trust you."
I kissed her on the forehead (thankfully she'd made herself even shorter than I was) and let her get back to her breakfast.
8:03 A.M.
Bran was actually starting to taste more palatable, and it had nothing to do with my new species. The stuff had a good crunch to it, and I found myself biting down on it with my fangs to get more feel from it. It probably had something to do with my changeling side and the reptilian part of my brain—Stopping that line of thought, I took a moment to search about lizard brains and found the whole idea was a bad one. Okay, so it was probably my changeling brain—something I do have.
Bent Rules arrived to take the girls around to the other house—escorted there by Starling—which left Rainbow, Byte, and myself to head to the boutique and open it. I led the way out the front door and surveyed the cars we had. Behind me, Byte and Rainbow carried boxes that had to go with us.
"Your choice, Rainbow-darling, the minivan, or your—"
"Why don't we take the new car?" Rainbow Dash asked.
Not willing to question her choice directly, I began walking toward the all-electric car.
—Darling, did you work out how to control this remotely yet?— I asked NotABug.
A surprised chirp almost made me giggle.
—The new car? Not yet. They have fantastic security. Besides, I think Rainbow beat you to the driver's seat.—
"You actually like it?" I asked.
That Rainbow was already opening the driver's door and climbing in told me everything I needed to know, but I still wanted to hear her say it.
"It's not a V8, but it has some really awesome acceleration, and for a nerdy car, it's fast. Yeah, I like it, but it's easy to like."
Using my magic, I lifted Byte's burden and put it in the back seat where Rainbow had put hers, then I climbed into the passenger seat. When Byte jumped in the back beside the boxes of dresses, Rainbow pulled out a pair of sunglasses and put them on.
"Byte, darling, please put your safety belt on."
"Yes, Mom!" Byte said.
Once my own was on, I leaned over and kissed Rainbow's cheek.
"If you knock any of my dresses over, I'll make you wear something frilly tomorrow."
"Rarity, there's a trick to not knocking things over in a car when you're driving fast—don't stop and don't corner," Rainbow Dash said.
The car was astoundingly silent, beautifully so. I'd barely leaned back to my side when I found myself unceremoniously pushed back in my seat. This car was to my little economy hybrid what Rainbow's car was to your average gas guzzler. It was fast, without a doubt, but it was also tight—it gripped the road.
I managed to resist the urge to attack the car's entertainment system in an attempt to take control of it, mostly because I didn't want to mess something up while Rainbow was driving—say what I might about her driving, she had never lost control.
Instead, I turned to the internet and a friend I knew I could talk to about such things.
—Stefanie, are you there?— I asked.
—*Stefanie has been away for 5 hours: sleeping*—
Okay, drat. I knew asking her where she lived wouldn't be taken well, and besides, if I knew her, she wouldn't be keeping normal hours. I sent the model and make of the car to her and asked if she knew any exploits that could get me into it.
Without much further thought, I connected to the old chat server where I'd first met Stefanie.
BugQueen: Hi.AdminRolley: sup?BugQueen: Oh, not much, the usual. Trying to defeat a monstrous evil AI hellbent on destroying the whole world just to kill me. What about you?AdminRolley: pffAdminRolley: the usual.AdminRolley: Steve said your koshar, btw. dont know what you did for him, but he stepped up to bat for ya
He? Stefanie was lying to one of us, and I wasn't sure who. Not that it mattered, I trusted her/him well enough for the role they were in.
BugQueen: Have any more problems with Windigo?System user Sodinite joinedAdminRolley Private: Careful, sods a fedBugQueen Private => AdminRolley: So then why don't you boot him?AdminRolley Private: coz its good to know one slong as u know who they rSysPredBug Private: get the fuck off the channel
Some things didn't add up. Rolley was far less careful with their grammar as I knew them to be, and their attitude was all wrong. I dropped from the channel.
BugQueen Private => SysPredBug: What happened?SysPredBug Private: its all over their systems.SysPredBug Private: i got the server up to warn peeps before it hits them tooSysPredBug Private: WindigoBugQueen Private => SysPredBug: ChirpNet, ID 216760692072513537
—Bug?— Perdition asked.
—SysPredBug? What happened?— I asked back.
The conversation was real-time, which meant we were almost at the boutique.
—Somethin started hittin us all. Shit, if I didn't have Stef's firewall guarding my systems id be fucked. Whatever you did for her, you fuckin rock. It wasn't windago but it attacked the chat server over and over, but stef told me to trust the firewall. I got no fucking idea who ta trust now but her and you.—
—Do you need help? Money?—
Well if supplying likely criminals was a crime, I was about to make myself guilty. Drat, and I'd actually managed to keep myself clean so far.
Rainbow pulled up at the curb. I climbed out of the car and pulled out the keys to my new boutique.
—Na. Just need ta know who to trust. Stefs good, but don't trust anyone on the server, and dont let any of them send you any files. Stef said this is your gig and its safe but is it?—
—Yes. Chirpnet is secure against Windigo and others. You took a look? It runs over TOR now.—
I unlocked the front doors of my boutique and felt a delightful moment of fulfillment hit me square in the chest. This was it. This was the moment I'd been preparing all my life for.
Opening the doors, I took a deep breath of the air inside and smiled. The shopfitters had done a wonderful job with the place, and everything looked just how I'd imagined.
"This is wonderful!" I said.
"You earned it, Rarity. Now all the hard work begins," Rainbow Dash said as she carried her load of boxes past me.
—Yeah. I was scheptical as fuck. Nothing this smooth can be legit,— Perdition sent.
—Who is this?— NotABug asked.
I shared the chat history with her.
—This is one of the hackers I made contact with online. It seems something or someone has attacked the servers where they normally chat. I've made contact with them over ChirpNet.—
—Their grammar is terrible!—
—I know, darling. I know. But when I needed help, they offered it. I'd be a terrible bug if I didn't return the favor.—
—You like that term.—
It was only then I realized I'd used bug instead of person. Maybe that changeling mindset was settling in? Okay, Rarity, quick check.
Fashion? Fabulous!
Okay, everything seems to be in order, but what did this mean for me? Was this changeling attitude responsible for my need to protect everyone? I wished I could talk to Ocellus again. Even if she were a little naive, she was another changeling.
—It's fun and cute, and I think it sums up me. Before you came into my life, everything was going wrong and I didn't know it. I was in a spider's web and had convinced myself it was the place to be. Now? Now I have my own wings—wings that you showed me how to use,— I sent.
NotABug chirped happily in my head, so much that I was distracted from her actual reply for a moment.
—Well, you are a good bug, Rarity. The only other changeling leaders we know about is this Chrysalis and Thorax. I don't like what Princess Luna had to say about Chrysalis, but Thorax sounded nice. He should let his bugs chirp, though.—
I gestured at the light switches like I was conducting an orchestra. The room came to life and I could see where my front counter was, as well as all the storage space I'd arranged for.
"We need more dresses to show off, but they'll come. This is somewhere I can really make fashion happen."
—Is Stefanie asleep?— I asked Perdition.
—Yeah. She was ranting last night about gettin you some fuzzing data she put together. A sploit for somethin. I better go work. Dont stop fightn, buggo,— Perdition sent and signed off.
Either they're related or they're a couple. I had no idea which, but it was even more questions to ask Stefanie.
Warm chirping filtered through from NotABug, and I returned it gratefully while adding a hug too.
I was just setting up the first mannequin when I heard a different pair of footsteps at the front door. Turning, I saw a young woman standing in the doorway holding a cake of all things.
"Good morning, and welcome to Carousel Boutique," Byte said. "What can we help you with?"
"Well, I spoke to the lovely gentlemen who were putting your shop together yesterday, and they said you'd be opening today. I couldn't resist an excuse to bake a lovely carrot cake to welcome you into our little clique of fashion retail. My name's Glam Rock."
Of course her name was Glam Rock. If there were ever someone I could picture having that name, it was this woman. Her hair looked to be nearly half her body mass, and I was positive it would have required no less than five cans of hairspray to arrange.
"Darling! I'm honored!"
—Is the cake a lie?— Byte asked.
Before I could even hope to find out what she was talking about, a wave of chirpy giggles came from Moon Dancer.
—Now you must do SCIENCE!— Moon Dancer sent.
"Well, I still wasn't sure if you were competition, a big retail outlet, or what, so I slipped some poison into half of the cake."
Glam set the cake down on our front counter. Superficially, I could take the joke for good-natured ribbing, but I knew she'd want me to tell her I was in a completely unrelated field. I'm sure if told her I was selling gardening gloves, she'd be delighted.
"Custom-made dresses and outfits," I said. "My darling Rainbow Dash here, and our—"
—I shouldn't call you daughter, darling. Would niece be alright?— I asked Byte.
—Oh, right. I look too old, don't I? Okay, I'll be your niece, but that lets me call you "auntie".—
—Perhaps we could sneak through with daughter?—
Byte's flood of chirping made whatever was to come worth it. Drat but she could get anything she wanted from me with those chirps.
"…niece, Byte," I said.
"Auntie Rarity said I could help!" Byte said.
Rainbow's head snapped around from Byte to me. Never before had I wished she had her own data connection more. Well, okay, maybe during the fight with SuriGo. I paused for nearly twenty milliseconds in shock. That's perfect!
—SuriGo! I finally came up with a name we can call them that isn't a nightmare to pronounce!— I sent.
—How long has that been on your mind?— Moon Dancer asked.
—Since we discovered they had joined up. It was like an itch I couldn't scratch. Once you know the name of something, after all, it's much less scary.—
—Rainbow, we're calling Byte our niece since she doesn't look young enough to be our "daughter",— I sent directly to Rainbow Dash.
When Rainbow's phone beeped, and she pulled it out of the carefully hidden pocket on her dress, I heard Glam gasp in surprise.
"You put a usable pocket on a dress? That's amazing!" Glam Rock said.
"Make no mistake, I'll not compromise fashion for any feature, but once something is fashionable, that's where I can put things like dress pockets with a hidden seam," I said.
Not to mention room for guns and knives. I wouldn't tell the lovely woman that, however. A lady needed to keep some secrets, after all.
—Gotcha. Makes sense,— Rainbow Dash sent.
Her phone disappeared just as rapidly as she'd produced it.
After a slice of cake each, and a promise she would return for the lunch I'd planned, Glam Rock departed the boutique with an air of purpose. Well, of course she did. Glam Rock ran a successful fabric shop two doors down. She was in business to make money, and she did just that.
9:05 A.M.
Byte was at the door to greet our first actual customer. She smiled at Fleur dis Lee brightly.
"Good morning! Welcome to Carousel Boutique. How may we help you?" Byte asked.
"Well, someone promised me an outfit if I came to her boutique once it was open," Fleur dis Lee said.
Fleur wore a perfectly professional business suit. The skirt was long enough to be modest, yet short enough to ensure her pale legs were mostly on display. A pink shirt stood out at her neck and cleavage to keep her more personal assets both hidden while showing that she was a desirous woman. The outfit was a balancing act that held to the tightrope of chic businesswear exceptionally well.
"Darling! It's wonderful to see you again, and of course we can make you something."
I reached out for my measuring tape and drew its length out with my fingers. It was strange that it was strange to feel things with my fingers. My magic felt so familiar to use now—particularly since I wasn't crushing things with it by mistake—that it seemed horridly inefficient to use hands.
"What exactly were you looking for?" I asked.
But Fleur's eyes slid to Rainbow, then one of her impeccably cared for eyebrows rose.
"This is the woman who caught your eye?" Fleur dis Lee asked.
Fumbling to remember what I'd told Fleur, I let out a worried chirp.
—Is something wrong?— NotABug asked.
—I'd mentioned I was dating someone to Fleur, but I can't remember exactly what I'd told her. It was before we started recording everything.—
NotABug sent me a transcript of the conversation at the bank, for which she deserved (and got) a hug amid a flurry of grateful chirps.
—You're wonderful, but you knew that already, surely?— I asked.
—I learned from the best.—
"Other way 'round, actually," Rainbow Dash said. "Rarity just took a little time to understand what she meant to me."
Fleur's smile widened perceptibly. When I approached her to begin measuring, she lifted her arm for me.
"You held a torch for her, and true love blossomed? That's so romantic," Fleur dis Lee said. "What I wanted was something to show off in. I have a—a young man, and I want him to appreciate me as something other than a conversationalist."
I stood back from Fleur and looked down, then back up in an appraising way. She had curves, but they were slight. Her suit was doing some of that smoothing, but Fleur wasn't a curvy woman. Yet, at the same time, she was a woman who could stride down any catwalk given the right attention.
This was going to need more than what I could provide alone, however.
"Well, first thing, you need to appropriate yourself something to wear under the dress I make you—fashion is layers, darling, and it starts at the skin. There's a wonderful shop in the mall on this side of town that specializes in smalls—underthings—and if you don't mind, we could visit together to ensure you have a correct fitting."
Blinking in a little surprise, Fleur looked at me as if I'd just said she didn't know how to write a check.
"Forgive me for my attitude, Rarity, between office politics and not having many girl friends, I've lost touch with that side a bit more than I realized. In my mind," Fleur dis Lee said, "I'd pictured myself wearing the same dark and utilitarian things I wear to work."
"No one at all?" I asked. "What about the others from Crystal Prep?"
"You didn't attend CPH, Rarity. While I'm probably not much better than they were, I'm not sure if anyone there wanted to have anything to do with anyone else once we'd graduated. Cinch's little breakdown destroyed what little pride we had."
"How much time do you have today?" I asked.
A plan was forming. Fleur was in the midst of a crisis that she barely understood, and if there was one thing that I knew could help with any crisis it was fashion and friendship.
"I-I took the whole day."
"Rainbow, Byte, we have a fashion situation that needs all of our help. Come, we're going to get Fleur something she can be proud to wear no matter what day it is."
Rainbow looked at me with her customary smirk.
"Rarity, someone needs to be here. Take Byte. I'll keep an eye on things," Rainbow Dash said.
"Right. Of course. Still getting used to this. Okay, Fleur, let's go and get you some things," I said.
I could think thousands of times faster than anyone else, and yet the moment fashion became my focus, everything narrowed to a pinprick. This was something I could try to work past, but I doubt I'd ever shake this debilitating problem anytime soon.
—Why am I going too? Not that I mind,— Byte sent.
—You're coming because only half of this mission is to secure Fleur some smalls to wear. She needs friends, dear.—
—Oooh! You should get her to install ChirpNet on her phone, then she can talk to all of us, and we can help her find other friends!—
A chorus of affirmative chirps came from my other daughters. What surprised me was that Moon Dancer was among them. Her status among my little hive was still somewhat of a marvel to me, even if I accepted it without question.
—I think that would be a very good idea. Fleur helped me start my boutique, and she's a wonderful person at heart.—
Then it hit me, and I almost had to shake my head to clear it enough to get back to what Fleur had said.
"Tell me about him," I said.
Fleur let loose a sigh I recognized because I'd heard myself make it whenever my thoughts focused on Rainbow or NotABug.
"Tre is smart, handsome, and completely oblivious to me as a woman. He's my only friend, excluding those at work, but I just want him to take the hint and look at me. The last time I tried to get his attention, he mistook it for me wanting to go to a library to read books to children. That was nice, but left little opportunity to do anything else," Fleur dis Lee said.
I led the way out the front door with Fleur and Byte following along.
"How long have you been not-dating?" I asked.
"Two years."
The pain in those two words haunted me. I remember well how it'd felt before NotABug entered my life and opened my eyes to herself and Rainbow.
"Then let's get you ready to knock his non-committal socks off, darling. Forget waiting for him, it's time for you to make the move and show him what he's been missing."
Fleur's stance and walk changed. As she circled around our car to the passenger seat, she looked a hundred times more confident than before. Red would be her color. She was pale in skin and hair, and needed something vibrant to make her the center of attention. Hopefully, Tre's attention.
As I settled behind the wheel, I was thankful that I hadn't learned how to drive this wirelessly yet—doing so accidentally would create questions I didn't want to have to answer to everyone. The key fob being in the car was enough for it to be turned on, apparently, so I buckled up—waited for Fleur and Byte to do the same—and pressed the starter.
"An electric?" Fleur dis Lee asked.
"Rainbow got it for me just a day ago. This will be my first time driving it."
With a firm grip on the wheel, I pressed the lever into forward and touched the accelerator pedal. The car was eager and felt excited to move. Tapping the indicator and turning to ensure the road was clear, I pulled out and touched the pedal firmer.
The seats were like cradles. They hugged you from behind because when you asked this car to go, it went.
"Wow! That's quite something," Fleur dis Lee said. "Is that as fast as it can accelerate?"
"I don't think so. Let me try something at these lights."
A search followed by a quick reading of the car's manual revealed there was a particular setting I had to engage to do this right. With the lights red, I tapped to approve the change and took a deep breath. According to the information, as long as I could steer, the traction system would manage the acceleration safely, and given my level of focus I could handle the steering.
When the light turned green, I pressed my foot all the way down—then lifted it off 1.921 seconds later because we'd reached the speed limit.
"I think I know why Rainbow likes this one," I said.
"That was really awesome!" Byte said. "Can we do it again?"
—I'm sure Rainbow would love to show you this, too. For now I think we should just take Fleur shopping, the poor darling's been starved for friendship.—
Byte chirped excitedly, and I could feel her using me as a hot spot to send messages.
"I didn't know you had an older sibling," Fleur dis Lee said.
How much should I tell her, and how much should I lie? On one hand I felt compelled to spin a lie of an older sibling, but there was an easier way, and it involved the truth.
"It's dreadfully complicated, I'm afraid. You remember all that magic stuff that happened in high school?"
Fleur seemed to stiffen in her seat. What she was thinking, I couldn't tell, but Fleur wasn't a stupid woman.
"Oh. I didn't mean to pry or anything. Sorry, Rarity," Fleur dis Lee said.
"Quite alright, darling. Suffice to say Rainbow and I are taking care of Byte and her sisters, though the other little darlings are with a friend today."
All true. No lies. I had the distinct impression, however, that Applejack would still frown at me.
When I pulled up in the mall lot, Fleur let out a sigh beside me.
"Sorry for being so nosy. It's been far too long since I've had anyone at all to talk to that wasn't trying to get my job. Apart from Tre that is."
"Well, if you ever need to chat, just jump on ChirpNet, and send any of us a message," Byte said.
"Chirp what?"
"It's a chat app. What's your phone number?"
I climbed out of the car and left them to negotiate details. It really was a shame there wasn't a store nearer that catered to this particular item, but you can't have everything. Walking around the car, I felt a new ping from ChirpNet, then another.
The first was Fleur starting the app for the first time. I noticed Byte was filling in details for her.
—Hey, Rarity. Sorry I was out of it earlier. Fuzzin code,— Stefanie sent.
—Perfectly alright, darling. Perdition told me what had happened.—
We made it all the way to the doors of the mall before I got a reply from Stefanie.
—What happened?— Stefanie asked.
—When you weren't online, I connected to the old chat. Everything seemed off until Perdition messaged me and told me to get out. What's going on there?—
Finding Byte and Fleur holding up the conversation without me, I set my sights in the direction of the undergarment boutique.
—Feds raided my server. My chat server. When they found there were no logs, they set it back up as a honeypot. If it wasn't for you setting up all those extra TOR exit nodes, they probably would have caught all of us. As it was they didn't have enough of a sting to find anyone. So you chatted with Perd?—
Well, it was time to just brazenly ask her.
—I did. How are you two related, if you don't mind me asking?—
The cashier spotted me, and I swore she looked like she'd just seen a floating credit card zoom into her store. Still, I smiled at her and gestured toward Fleur.
"Hello, darling, today I've brought someone in need of assistance. I'm making a gorgeous rose dress for Fleur here, and we need something that will add a hint of excitement to it, and more once it comes off."
Gentle Fit (according to her nametag) turned toward Fleur and shook her head.
"Anyone would have to be insane to need more, dear, but that's why we're here. Was there something specific you enjoy wearing?" Gentle Fit asked.
Fleur looked at Byte and then to me. She looked a little lost.
"Something specific?" Fleur dis Lee asked.
I looked at Gentle and we both shared a startled moment.
"Darling, you've come to the right place. Gentle Fit has the most wonderful selection of things you've ever seen. Now come and let's explore."
By the time we were done in the store, Fleur had five bags of underthings and I had four. Byte, to my own delight, had a few things she'd picked out. My little girl was growing up much faster than I'd thought, but it wasn't like she was living life in the slow lane—none of us were.
With every second that slipped by I could count to a thousand and have time to wait around and record it somewhere. Byte, I could feel, was constantly sending and receiving data from the internet—constantly improving her conversational skills and becoming her own bug.
And now I was even thinking the word bug. Bug. Bug. Bug. As I pulled up back at my boutique, I let loose a little giggle.
—I'm so proud of you, dear,— I sent to Byte.
Byte replied with a curious chirp.
—Shopping, making a new friend, finding some things to wear,— I sent.
—Oh! Fleur's really nice, but I think she needed a friend more than I did.—
11:14 A.M.
As I reached the door of my boutique, I realized that Stefanie hadn't replied to me.
—Is it too much?— I asked Stefanie.
Inside, Rainbow Dash was folding one of my dresses up in its box for a woman. I blinked a few times in surprise and almost had Byte and Fleur run into me from behind.
"Thanks again. And remember, we can make custom dresses to order," Rainbow Dash said.
"Absolutely! I'll be talking to my sister—the one that's getting married next year—and I'm sure she'll be coming in here to talk about something special. Ciao!"
With a big smile on her face, the woman walked out of the boutique carrying the dress. Rainbow Dash, still behind the counter, had a huge smile on her face.
"You sold a dress?" I asked.
"Two. That purple one you'd made to suit Twilight? Someone with the perfect shape and color palette to suit it just walked in. It was an easy sale."
I dropped my bags at the door and ran over to Rainbow and kissed her on the cheek.
"Darling! You're amazing!"
—Kinda. I don't know how much I want to tell anyone. We only been together for a year, but for the first time in my life I like bein with someone. I guess im just a but scared its like some disney true love shit,— Stefanie sent.
Well that answered some of my questions. I waited an entire second to collect my thoughts before replying.
—You like him, don't you?—
—Yeah.—
—And he likes you?—
—Yah.—
—Darling, none of us have Disney romances, even when some of us think we do. You know why that is? It's because this is real life, and the best you can do is find someone who makes you smile, that you can make smile, and spend your time smiling with them.—
"You're chatting with someone?" Rainbow Dash asked.
Her question snapped me out of what must have been a minor daze. I nodded my head sheepishly.
"Yes. A friend. She's having guy trouble," I said.
"Oof. I know how that goes. There was this girl, ya see, and I had it bad for her, but she barely even looked at me."
I just groaned and leaned back from the front counter to leave Rainbow to her laughter. Turning back to Fleur I noticed she'd been looking at us both with curiosity etched on her face. Fleur, it seemed, might not be the kind of person who can just be left out of a thing.
—How about I make you a deal? Once we're done here you can ask me all the questions you want answers to, and I'll answer them. Deal?— I asked Fleur.
Fleur's phone, of course, beeped. Still looking at me, she drew it from her purse and stared at it.
—Yes, this is me sending messages. Just nod if you want to play guess the drama,— I sent.
Slowly nodding, Fleur looked up from her phone. If she'd looked curious before, she was utterly intrigued now.
"Now, darling, let's see what style you want. That little black number you picked up would look stunning with something that could hide its straps, but not its lace."
"R-Right! A dress for Tre," Fleur dis Lee said.
"No. This dress will be for you. If Tre wants a dress, he can come in and buy one himself."
Fleur's laugh seemed to take a lot of the stress out of her posture. It came as I got another message from Stefanie.
—It's just hard here. It doesn't help I break the law for a living an Perd works minimum wage.—
—Have you considered doing what you do for more, ahem, legitimate purposes?— I asked.
As we approached where the big wrap-around mirror was toward the back of the store, Fleur seemed to relax a little more.
"I'll be honest, Rarity, I've needed to take a day or two off from work for a while. I don't care what you're hiding or what you're willing to tell me, it's just nice to be with someone I—someone who's going through life like me," Fleur dis Lee said.
"I fully agree. After all, that's how Rainbow and I got together. Oh, that reminds me, will you stay for lunch?"
—Like anyone hires hackers and lackeys off the street,— Stefanie sent.
I couldn't keep a concerned little chirp from breaking loose. This had to be a changeling thing. I couldn't be the only changeling queen who wants to protect everyone around her and hug them until they're happy.
—I would.—
"Don't tell me you catered?" Fleur dis Lee asked.
"Yeah! Mom got a sushi chef to come and make us all sushi," Byte said.
Drat. Well, there's a question I'd be answering later.
Stefanie, in the moments since I sent my message, went offline. Part of me wanted to track her down, fly over to her and chirp at her angrily until she came home with me. Okay, that was definitely my buggier side. Mothering instinct? I've got a little.
"She should be here shortly, actually," I said.
We got back to the task of choosing what style dress Fleur wanted, and had a reasonably good idea when I heard Rainbow at the front of the store greet someone. Turning, I spotted Kit wheeling in a portable version of her father's sushi bar.
"Over here, Kit. You can set up at this corner. Do you need power?" Rainbow Dash asked.
Kitsune Udon looked flushed and excited. She nodded her head at the question as she rolled the bar to where she wanted it.
"Yes please, Miss Rainbow. I have a chiller to keep the fish at the right temperature, and just need some help bringing that in if you wouldn't mind?" Kitsune Udon asked.
"You actually—You got a Japanese sushi chef for your opening day?" Fleur dis Lee asked. "That's—"
"Actually," I said, "I have paid her to make it a weekly event. She's an amazing chef."
—What did you say to Stef???????— Perdition asked.
—I asked if you'd both like a job doing something I know you both enjoy,— I sent.
—Stefanie, if you're there, I don't mean to force you, but I'd like it if you'd work for me,— I sent to Stefanie.
The counterpoint between the fun of helping Kit set up her sushi bar and the serious conversation with Stefanie and Perdition (I was intrigued to find out if that was his real name) was a struggle to keep track of, but such was the life of someone trying to create fashion and keep their friends safe.
"Rarity, you're going to go over budget here if you're not careful," Fleur dis Lee said.
I fluttered my lashes at Fleur and smiled.
"Darling, I admit that this has made quite an impact on my initial funds, but I have planned for this. There is a very good reason that such expenses are not just justified, they're mandatory," I said.
—A job? What do you do that needs a couple of nuts like us?— Perdition asked.
—ChirpNet for one,— I sent.
"You're not actually going to tell me what that reason is, are you? Or you'll claim it's because of fashion. I'm not sure I want to know, but it will eat away at me."
Perdition, I noticed, hadn't replied.
"Fashion, darling, is the reason to do anything. That and family."
My eyes slid from Rainbow to Byte, then back again. I know for a fact I let out a contented sigh, and chirped at NotABug.
—You're quiet today. Still studying?— I asked NotABug.
I was mentally pounced with much chirping and excited hugging. Of course I could do nothing less than chirp back for all I was worth and hug her in return.
—Mrs. Velvet says I'm getting through a year of study every day, but it's taking all my time. I miss being with you and the girls so much.—
—Did you see Rainbow and Byte in their dresses?— I asked.
A rush of bubbly-happy chirps poured from NotABug nonstop.
—I did! They both look amazing! You look amazing too.—
—Did you want some time tonight to do your thing with Rainbow?—
—My thing? Do I have a thing?— NotABug asked.
—Darling, of the three of us, you initiate close snuggles more. That's your thing. Mine is…—
I trailed off the sentence, unsure what to add.
—Yours is dressing up in something sexy. Dressing Rainbow up too. Maybe we could all go to the lingerie store together?—
I liked the sound of that. NotABug, Rainbow, and I shopping for clothing together? Dream. Come. True.
—And buy things for each other?— I asked.
The chirping turned to a tone I only ever heard from NotABug when snuggling with Rainbow Dash, and it was odd to think that she was making it for me. But, why not? We loved each other. Our love always felt more removed from the naughty things her chirping envisioned.
No. I was above worrying about who I loved. I loved NotABug for who she is, not what she is. I chirped back in harmony with her naughty chirps and hugged her a little tighter.
—Are you alright, Rarity?—
—Better than you could imagine, darling.—
—Your shittin me. You own chirpnet?— Perdition asked.
Gosh what a mood breaker, but I couldn't exactly chastise him for it.
—Partly. We're looking for more programmers. Do you and Stefanie want jobs?— I asked Perdition.
—You're still talking to your hacker friends?— NotABug asked.
—Yes. I'm offering them a job and somewhere to live. They've helped me test the firewall to fight off SuriGo (I really like this one), and given me some good ideas about the nature of us.—
—They sound nice,— NotABug sent to me.
—Hi! Rarity said you were thinking of working for us?— NotABug sent to Perdition in a group chat with me.
—This is NotABug,— I sent.
"Well, the bank's credit system said to trust you for the overdraft and cards, that's all that matters there. I hope fashion is enough, Rarity," Fleur dis Lee said.
Simultaneous conversations at different speeds were starting to get tiring to maintain. Life really should be easier to interact with than this.
—Shit! The real deal? I thought you and buggo here were the same person. And you both own chirpnet?— Perdition asked.
—We do, but we want it to be perfect. We're already recruiting someone to work on the interface, but some security experts would be good to have on the team,— NotABug sent.
He thought we were the same person? Huh. Well, I guess that was valid, in a way. I wonder what he'll make of us in the flesh as it were? Questions without answers are just annoying.
"Trust me, darling, when you try Chef Kit's work, you'll understand."
Kit began working on her first piece of sushi. She made a neat little prawn nigiri and set it on a wooden plate with a few pieces of pickled ginger on the sides. She served it to Fleur, who looked on in surprise.
"This is the point where you try it," I said.
"How do I do that? Do I need chopsticks? Do I—?" Fleur dis Lee said.
She seemed to stop, take a breath, and then picked up the sushi with her fingers and put it in her mouth. For a moment I wondered if she'd spit it back out, but then Fleur began to chew with every evidence that she enjoyed what she was tasting.
—Okay. If we said yes where are we going? I dont wanna work in a cold place.—
—Canterlot, America,— I sent.
"For these you use your fingers, but this next piece is a roll that you use chopsticks for. I have bamboo chopsticks, and there are serviettes to clean your hands afterward," Kitsune Udon said.
I left the two to talk about sushi while I walked over to where Rainbow stood. Without hesitation, I leaned in and kissed her cheek with all the enthusiasm and energy a day spent running my own boutique gave me—or I wanted to. Kissing her that much may just be illegal in public.
Rainbow turned her head and put her arms over my shoulders in the most wonderfully casual hug I could imagine and kissed me properly. By the time her lips left mine, my toes were curling.
"Do I need to ask what that was for?" Rainbow Dash asked.
—Ill talk to Stef. She desserves better than what we got.—
"No. That was for being the girl I never realized I should fall in love with," I said. "And for being awesome."
There weren't many words I knew that would make Rainbow perk up as much as awesome would. She let out a little snort and looked like she might kiss me again—I liked that look.
"Thanks for making me feel awesome, Rarity. You too, NotABug. Not sure if you noticed, but I wasn't doing so great before you both became part of my life."
—The idiot didn't even ask how much you'd pay us. So, how much?— Stefanie asked.
—Darling, how much do you think you're worth?— I asked.
NotABug was extremely chirpy still, and I figured I knew why. In the time it took for me to reply to Stefanie, Rainbow had her phone out and was typing away rapidly.
"Rarity?"
The tone of the voice was unmistakable. I spun around and was already in motion toward the speaker. Laying my eyes on Sunset Shimmer, I practically threw myself against her.
"S-Sunset! You're back! How are you feeling? Oh goodness, I didn't hurt you, did I?" I asked.
Sunset's normal, chuckling laugh brought me back to the moment and grounded me.
"You're worse than Flash. I'm okay, really. That—That thing just took a lot out of me," Sunset Shimmer said. "Flash wants to apologize, you know, for what he said."
"I deserved every word of it. This wasn't your fight, particularly not in your condition. Congratulations, by the way."
"Thanks, I—"
Walking up, Flash's presence silenced Sunset.
"No, Rarity, you didn't deserve all of it. I was scared, alone, and I shouldn't have been either. Sunset's big enough to pick her own fights," Flash Sentry said. "I'm sorry. I can't believe I said all that. I should have been thanking you for bringing her somewhere she can recover."
I let go of Sunset so she could stand beside Flash and put her arm around him. Darn but they looked cute together.
"Besides, having a week of relaxation was enough. What happened with Starling and Rainbow? Are they okay? Did you beat Suri?" Sunset Shimmer asked.
My mind twisted at the mention of a week of time, but I recalled the long lesson Twilight had given us about time slip and portals syncing—it was too much to figure out without the kind of schooling Twilight had, I'm sure. It had been just a few days for me, but a week for them, that was the important bit.
"Starling is fine. Rainbow is the pretty girl over there in a dress—also fine. Suri, unfortunately, is fine as well. Though that last one I'm working on."
—Hundred thou up front. Another each per year,— Stefanie said.
—That sounds like a deal. When you arrive, I'll have you talk to our business manager. What account do you need the money in?—
Rainbow, meanwhile, had heard her name and rushed over to see Sunset. Rather than a hug, they entreated a fist-bump with a little explosion sound from both.
"What was it like being a horse again?" Rainbow Dash asked.
Sunset bit her lip and smiled sideways at Flash, who seemed to catch the smile and return it.
"Well, it was a lot better this time. Having someone I love with me made it a lot less lonely than I remember. I still wanted to come back to see my friends. Oh, Princess Luna, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity all send their support."
"What about you, Flash?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Huh?"
"You know, four legs and furry? Also, wings? Awesome, amiright?"
"Oh! Well, yeah, but I was kinda distracted with somepony—body."
"What I want to know, Rainbow," Sunset Shimmer said, "Is how Rarity got you to wear a dress like that. What's her secret? Changeling mind-control powers?"
"Actually… We're kinda together now. I wanted to help at her new shop—"
"Boutique, darling, and you're a wonderful help," I said.
"Right. Boobtique," Rainbow Dash said. "So I wanted to help, and she was all like Well I need an executive manager."
Both Sunset and Flash were laughing, and the tone lightened my mood enough that I overlooked Rainbow's gag at my expense and joined in. By the time we all managed to stop laughing, Rainbow pointed over to the corner where Fleur was talking with Kit.
"You've gotta try this sushi. It's amazing!" Rainbow Dash said.
Try as they might to protest, Sunset and Flash were dragged over to the sushi bar by Rainbow.
—Just like that? You'd give us a hundred grand each to work there? Your crazy, Rarity. But I'm rememberig that you also own chirpnet. Okay, youve got two of the worst hackers in the world. We'll be on the next flight there as soon as u send us the money.—
—Send me your account details and I'll send you the money.—
"Rainbow! I can't have sushi. I'm pregnant," Sunset Shimmer said.
"Excuse me," Kitsune Udon said, "But I have some cooked eel I can use to make something safe for you, if you'd like?"
Stefanie sent me a bunch of numbers including a branch number and account number. I forwarded them to Coco.
—Darling, I have two more computer programmers who will be working for us. Would you be able to arrange for them to be paid $100,000 dollars to their account? They should be here within a day or two,— I sent to Coco.
I started walking over to see what Kit was going to make for Sunset when I got a response from Coco.
—Rarity! I don't understand what you're trying to do, but you need to slow down this spending! We need a meeting ASAP!— Coco Pommel sent.
—Do we need to slow down our spending?— I asked NotABug.
—A little. Mr. Pants helped me incorporate a business under your name that trades on the stock market, which is earning enough that we don't have to worry about money or investigations in the short term. Long-term, It'd be nice if we could monetize ChirpNet in some way, and start selling your firewall.—
—You mean people might have been asking questions before?—
—Perhaps. Now that you have a company that is specifically focused on HFT, that will likely be ignored. We're probably going to have people trying to work out how we make such a constant profit, but that's a job for Coco.—
—This all came up because Coco said we need a meeting. Why don't we meet with her and find out what the problem is?—
—You should have her come to the boutique and talk. That way she might not yell so much.—
I couldn't help a chirpy giggle at NotABug's suggestion, but that didn't make it a bad one. Swapping back to my chat with Coco, I began writing my reply.
—Sure thing, darling. I'm at my boutique if you can drop by?— I asked Coco Pommel.
With a few happy chirps sent in NotABug's direction, I awaited Coco's answer as several people entered the boutique.
—I'll be there in an hour,— Coco Pommel sent.
It was, of course, lunch hour. All the nearby shop owners seemed to drop by, and Kit managed to persuade most of them to try some of her sushi. By the time Coco arrived, Kit was packing up (though between Rainbow, Byte, and myself, the sushi was all gone).
"There you are! Rarity—Did you have a sushi chef cater lunch on your opening day?" Coco Pommel asked.
"Well, of course we did. It had such a wonderful impact that I plan to have her along every week. Thank you, Kit," I said.
With a wave to Kit, she left the boutique and had a real spring to her step. I wondered if I should offer to make her something, but realized it'd be a far better plan to just make something and give it to her.
"It's too much too fast. You need to slow growth down, even if you do have enough funds to cover it. Businesses like this don't just spring up overnight," Coco Pommel said. "The only reason you aren't being investigated is that you appear to be making much less than any other HFT-tech companies, and aren't spending nearly as much either. Do I even want to know how you're trading as such?"
"You mean without all the specialized connections and specialized networks of very expensive machines? Would you believe NotABug is just that good at—"
—It's mostly 'Bee doing it now. She's a lot better at gaming money markets than I am,— NotABug sent.
A chirp of excitement came from 'Bee.
—It's harder now. The computers they use to do this actually learned how to take advantage of my earlier patterns, but I've been introducing a glitch here and there. It makes it so that if they try to game my purchases, they'll lose a lot more than I do. It makes them stop wanting to follow my purchases because they lose too much. Then they started pattern matching my glitches, so I had to introduce random patterns into those to hide the fact they are forced glitches, but even this became a pattern to them. It's really fun to play against them!— Bumblebee sent.
"Actually," I said, "It's my daughter 'Bee who's doing the trading now, it seems. And she's been enjoying it quite a bit."
—Thank you, 'Bee, from the bottom of my heart. What you're doing helps us all, and I don't think I could do it myself,— I sent.
'Bee's chirping was swift and joyous. Then it was quite literally in the room with me as my daughter jumped out of the screen of the point of sales computer. Shaking her head, she turned to face me and bounced across the floor on four stiff legs.
Reaching down, I grabbed up my daughter and pulled her into a hug. I wanted to chirp, out loud, but shapeshifting in the boutique might be a little too much.
"I love you, Momma!"
"I love you too, sweetie. This," I said, "Is 'Bee. She does all our trading on the stock market now, and was so excited to hear me thanking her for it that she had to come here in person."
"Why's the lady angry with you, Mommy?"
"She's angry with me because I'm moving too fast for what she thinks is safe, money wise. She's worried that people might find what we're doing and investigate us—even though we aren't doing anything wrong. It would mean we'd have to wait to do a lot of the things we can do quickly right now."
"Oh! So she's a nice lady?"
"Yes, 'Bee, Miss Pommel is a nice lady, she's just frustrated with someone who doesn't know business as well as she does."
"Who's that?"
"Me, dear."
"Your mother is very smart, 'Bee, but she needs people to protect her and tell her when she needs to learn a new skill," Coco Pommel said. "She's very good at making clothes—probably the best—but I worry about her business skills."
Rolling my eyes, I stuck my tongue out at Coco.
"Hi, 'Bee!" Byte said.
Walking up to us, Byte leaned in and kissed 'Bee on the cheek.
"How was Moon doing?" Byte asked.
"Oh! She was having a late lunch with Aunt Sweetie! They were talking about robotics and kept coming back to making one look like me. I helped them with the joint designs, but they told me not to give them all the ideas. Why didn't they want all the right ways to do it?" Bumblebee asked.
"That's because some people like to do things without having all the answers," Coco Pommel said.
"It's silly! I could make it easier for them!"
"I agree," Coco Pommel said.
The words made 'Bee perk up and turn in my arms to face Coco more fully.
"But," Coco Pommel said, "Only when the outcome is important and your effort saves people from being hurt."
"Oh."
—She's really clever,— Bumblebee sent.
I tipped my head down and kissed 'Bee as she tried to burrow into my arms and hide.
"Coco is very clever, dear," I said. "Which is why I listen to her when she calls me foolish. We all need someone who will help us know that moment we're about to go too far."
Glancing at Coco, I saw a knowing smile as she looked back, but it changed to something more curious when she looked down at 'Bee in my arms.
Of course, I didn't have to guess when it came to emotions. Focusing on Coco's aura, I could see mirth and curiosity, as well as something a little harder to pin down.
"So what do we do to grow within boundaries, but still grow?" I asked.
Real surprise blossomed on Coco's face. She stared at me as if I'd said something profound. When I opened my mouth to ask her what was the matter, she raised both hands to ward me off.
"Hold on! That's it! Do you have a pen and paper handy?"
Now there's a problem I'll never have myself. I started looking around, but Rainbow moved up beside me with grace and speed and handed me a notepad and a pen. I took them, and a kiss on the cheek from her, and passed the items to Coco.
"It's so simple! Normally you adjust spending to modify profits, with income being more or less stable. We need to flip that around," Coco Pommel said.
Jotting down, she drew a graph that showed a line slowly growing larger and larger.
"Normally we'd put profit on the left, and time on the bottom. Profit being the thing we want to adjust by other factors. But that's irrelevant here. We can make any graph we want by adjusting our income to keep our profits rate of change a constant!
"What I need to find out now is a rate of growth that looks normal. Oh, and cash flow is another important factor, but a little less than profit. Where's the profit going to go?"
Coco lifted her head from her mathematics equations to look at me.
—Profits will get invested back into capital purchases, mostly. We can donate much of it,— NotABug sent.
"NotABug says we will be primarily investing profits into capital purchases, and we can donate most of the rest."
"That always goes over well. Investment and donation, both lead to wonderfully low taxes. So the important part here is, to have very little left over after that. Don't get me wrong, profit is good, but it will make you stand out. I've already spoken to your lawyers, and they have set about proceedings to incorporate. It's relatively cheap, but we do need to decide on directors and a name."
"I want all our children, and Rainbow, as shareholders. Starling and her father, too."
"Directors. We can issue shares later. Who will have ultimate say in this?" Coco Pommel said with more insistence.
"You, Rainbow, myself, and NotABug when we finish having her recognized as a person."
Coco smiled at me, and I remembered how close she'd been to losing herself in the mess Suri had made of her. Her aura, now, looked healthy and full—vibrant.
"I still can't understand how you trust people so easily, Rarity. I'll be registering myself as CEO the moment your shares are all confirmed. We're going to need more employees. Accountancy, HR, security—"
"Starling—" I said.
"Is a wonderful young woman, and quite capable—I'm sure—but you need someone in charge of the company's security. Certainly Miss Starling can help me vet candidates. IT, I believe, you have covered?"
In my arms, 'Bee let out a sharp chirp and shot her head up. With one little hoof raised, she made a credible salute that I could tell Coco noticed by the way her aura turned from mostly neutral to a sudden overabundance of love.
That my daughter carefully sucked just a little of it off, her aura-self slurping it like a string of spaghetti, surprised me. Seeing how she fed, compared to how I'd fed in the past, was amazingly different.
—Did you teach her to feed like that?— I asked Byte.
Byte's answering chirp of assent was more than enough of a reply.
—Could you teach me?— I asked.
This time the chirp was a little more uncertain, but then another quickly followed it that was dripping in excitement. I couldn't keep back my own chirps of reassuring comfort.
—I'd love to, Mom!—
"Now we just need a name for our corporation," Coco Pommel said.
—Something with bug in it!— NotABug sent.
A chorus of chirping poured into my head, and the smile it gave me could have withstood just about anything. I chirped back my own assent, and realized that this chirping was more than just a fun and cute way to share emotions—we were offering and sharing opinions with it.
I filed away the idea of using chirps as an actual alphabet of sorts for emotions and ideas for later and turned my attention back to Coco.
"Well, everyone seems to think it needs bug in the title."
Another little flood of chirps reinforced my words to me. I would have wondered how everyone could see and hear what was going on, but then I remembered that I'd shared my daughters' eyes before. We ourselves were nodes of ChirpNet.
Protecting ChirpNet had never seemed so important as now.
"Bug Corp? Bug Inc? Bugginess? Sure Bug?" Coco Pommel asked. "I could rattle off a few more if you like?"
"Why not Bug Hive?" Byte asked.
The exciting chirping become a hurricane of excitement. Bug Hive seemed to be a winner.
"Yes," I said. "Bug Hive it is. I assume you have to check if it's free?"
"That's where most of the cost of incorporation goes. Checking name registries, ensuring everything is clean, then paying the actual fee—which will be about a third of the cost of the registries," Coco Pommel said.
"What happens if you don't check them?" I asked.
"If no one has the name? Nothing. If someone has it, we might not know until the lawsuit arrives. Let's avoid as many lawsuits as we can. It's comforting to have lawyers on retainer, but I'd rather not need to use them."
I took a slow breath and contemplated that eventuality. With the rest of my time I started doing searches for the various names. Several were taken. There was a surprising amount of companies with the word bug or hive in their name, but none with bug hive, or so I hoped.
"Do what you must, and get back to 'Bee about how much you want her to make in any day. 'Bee, dear, you could make sure to hit a total gain over a twenty-four hour period?" I asked.
'Bee looked a little surprised by that. She nodded quickly, her smile making me almost feel sorry for the target of whatever she was planning to do.
"This will work even better. If I hide my gains in perfectly weighted losses, the other HFT systems will fail to catch my system more often. They've been trying to break my latest algorithm, so I'll make a new one that is even better at throwing them off," Bumblebee said.
"I'll send you the projections once I've put them together. The taxation on such rapidly changing stock portfolios is already a nightmare, might as well look at automating that too, if you wouldn't mind helping?" Coco Pommel asked.
'Bee chirped loudly, her little wings vibrating in excitement.
"Take that as a yes. You have ChirpNet on your phone, 'Bee can send you her contact details so you can keep in touch," I said.
Coco's phone beeped, and 'Bee let out another giggly chirp.
"I know I shouldn't ask, but what about Suri?"
"I don't have a full plan yet, but I'm working toward a way to hopefully separate the two so I can deal with Windigo and leave Suri to whatever life she wants to live. Like I said, however, that's how I hope it goes. She's casually destroying lives, and I won't allow that to continue."
It was impossible to escape that. I knew I was building weapons to protect just us right now, but I would need to face SuriGo at some point, and I might not be able to save Suri, but I was going to try.
"Well, I'll be honest, Rarity. I'm an executive and fashion consultant, not a superhero. All these matters starting your corporation and managing profits—that I can do."
"Coco, darling, I don—"
"I'm not done yet. What I'm trying to say, Rarity, is that even though I'm all the things you don't need in a fight, just tell me what you need me to do and I'll do it."
Before all this I could inspire people to some extent, but what I was doing lately was nothing short of magic. Was this more of a changeling queen's powers? Was I doing something to her that made her want to help me? It wasn't emotional manipulation—like what SuriGo was doing—since Starling, Stefanie, and Perdition were apparently all willing to help despite being separated from me in various manners.
Perhaps changelings were just naturally trustworthy? Given Princess Luna's reaction to me, however, that was unlikely. Life was far more complicated now than it had any right to be.
"I'm doing this to protect people like you, Coco. If things go the way I hope, the worst side of Suri we'll have to deal with is an impudent young woman on a power trip."
"I'll leave you to it, then," Coco Pommel said.
Watching her leave my boutique, I felt my desire to protect Coco and others like her grow even further.
Sunset, with Flash waiting at the door, rushed over and wrapped me in a hug.
"Just tell me when you need backup again, okay? I don't want to touch her, but if you have anyone else whose secrets you need, I'm your gal."
I was sure Flash could hear her, he looked at us with a measure of panic on his face.
"Darling, I've already put you in danger once due to miscalculating. I have things well in hand."
Looking into my eyes, Sunset let out a sigh.
"You're not going to let me help, are you?"
"I will if you want to, but not in a head-on battle against something that enjoys invading people's minds. Do you want a job?"
She just stared at me for a minute then shook her head.
"Let's talk about that another time. I need to go home and—I can't believe I'm going to say this—have a lay down and focus on getting better."
Smiling, Sunset turned and walked to Flash, and they both left my boutique.
'Bee returned to spend the afternoon with Sweetie and Moon, while I retired to the back of the boutique to work on dresses—as well as do some programming. We had few customers in the afternoon, but Rainbow secured two more bookings, and Byte sold another of the dresses I'd made.
5:12 P.M.
"Uh, Rarity?" Rainbow Dash asked. "What time are we meant to close?"
I thought about the issue of opening hours, and let out a sigh. A quick search of the area revealed most of the other stores closed at five.
"Just let me finish this last seam and we can go. Did we end up with many bookings?" I asked.
"I've kept them to one a day so far. You have the rest of the week booked. Rarity, how did all these people know about your shop?"
I used my magic as well as my hands to speed the last seam.
"Well, since I quit at Polomare I've been telling everyone I'd start my own boutique. I wouldn't be surprised if we had even more come by tomorrow."
—Mom? Mr. Rules said to invite you to come around for dinner. He's made food for everyone!— Bitwise sent.
—Please let him know we'll be on our way home soon,— I sent.
I sent a little burst of happy chirps to all our daughters and was caught in a flood of them coming back from all quarters. There was an amazing feeling of warmth whenever I realized all these lives were because of NotABug, Rainbow, and myself.
When I felt a pair of hands touch my shoulders, I leaned back and felt Rainbow's solid self press to my back, neck, and the back of my head. Her hands crossed over my breastbone and she held me against her body.
Rainbow could have done a myriad of flippant and hurtful things that I would have forgiven just to be held like this. That the worst thing I'd caught her doing was checking her phone between customers meant that it was twice as wonderful.
"I'd ask you where you were five years ago, darling, but you were waiting on me. All I can do is apologize for being so blind."
"Rarity, how many times have I told you, this is why I waited. Are you going to let me take you home now and kiss you properly?"
I shivered at how she said that. Nodding, I was almost completely distracted by Rainbow, but managed to remember Bitwise's message.
"Mmmm Bent Rules invited us around for dinner. Bitwise said he'd been doing a lot of cooking."
I stood up and turned so I was still in Rainbow's arms. To my delight she kissed me—twice—then took my hand.
"Well, we shouldn't keep him waiting. Unless you want to drop Byte off there and go for another drive?"
My eyes flicked to Byte. Our daughter was cleaning up and closing the store around us. When she got too close, I reached out with a hand and grasped hers.
Byte let out a surprised chirp, but didn't resist as I pulled her into a one-armed hug.
"Is Moon coming over too?" Rainbow Dash asked.
—Is Moon coming to dinner too?— Byte asked.
—Asking Mr. Rules,— Bitwise sent.
—Do I get a say in this?— Moon Dancer asked.
I witnessed my first ironic chirps, and I realized our daughters had never been exposed to much in the way of sarcasm. Quickly compiling a data packet with the chirps Moon made, I sent it and explained sarcasm, that is to say, I tried.
—Moon's making a joke of saying something other than what she means. Sorry, dear, not all of us know the intricacies of irony,— I sent.
—I got it. It's an interesting form of humor, but doesn't work as well in text as it does with oral data. The chirping helps,— Byte sent.
—Mr. Rules says okay.—
—I'll be around in about twenty. I need to wrap this stuff up with Lyra and 'Bee.—
—Twenty what?— Beta asked.
—Twenty minutes,— Moon Dancer sent.
When I felt NotABug stir from her study, I gave her a gentle nudge. After a rapid-fire exchange of chirps, I nudged properly and let her take control—just as Rainbow Dash picked us up.
"Did you two just swap? Either you swapped, or you had a moment of gas," Rainbow Dash said.
"Swapped," NotABug said.
Rainbow bent and kissed NotABug in a way that would have had me blushing, were I up front.
"Byte, you've got the cash box?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Yeah. Want me to lock the door?"
"You got it."
Rainbow carried us outside and along the street toward our car. There was something luxurious and sexy about being carried so, and NotABug definitely felt it as much as I did given the amount of chirping she was doing.
Leaving NotABug and Rainbow to bring Byte home, I reached out to Bitwise and chirped softly to her.
—What's up?— Bitwise asked.
—Nothing, dear. I was just checking how you and Bobbin are. NotABug took over with our body, and I thought I'd come and chat a little.—
Bobbin gave a surprised chirp.
—Hi Mom!— Bobbin sent. —We've been cooking!—
—Really? Care to show me?—
Bobbin sent a few confused little chirps that had me sending some reassuring ones. It was 'Bee who sent more.
—You do it like this. You can let anybuggy see through your eyes,— Bumblebee sent.
Her use of "anybuggy" had me chirping with mirth.
The view from Bobbin resolved itself into a perfect stereoscopic vision from much higher than my little nymph had any right being. She looked down, and I realized she was standing on the kitchen bench.
—Mr. Rules made us wash our hooves before we could get up here and help,— Bobbin sent.
Questing out, I felt Bitwise and slipped into her view too. She was standing beside the stove and using her magic to stir a pot. I watched as she used another spoon to dip in and lift out a little of the red contents and bring it to her snout.
I shifted only a little further to hear with her ears.
"…needs some more acid. Uh, lemon?" Bitwise asked.
"Lemon juice would be one way, tomato would be another," Bent Rules said.
I couldn't see Bent until his hand tipped in something from a cutting board that looked like finely cut sun-dried tomatoes, where Bitwise stirred the mix a little more.
"Give that a taste in about another minute, then see what you think."
Bitwise nodded and let out a happy chirp.
—You're helping?—
—Yup! Mr. Rules said I could help. I need to use magic, though, but Mr. Rules said I could nibble on him and to let him know if I didn't feel good. This is fun!—
Color me surprised. If I ever got used to my daughters finding talents they enjoyed, and becoming their own selves, I'd consider all the wonder in life dead. I let loose a string of happy chirps.
—We're on our way. Holy shit, I can't believe we're really doing this. You're crazy for sending that much money, and we're crazy for giving away all our crap, but I guess that makes us the right kind of crazy to get together. Alright, Rarity, we'll be touching down in twelve hours, give or take,— Stefanie sent.
The math was quick to do. Twelve hours would have them arriving at around 5 A.M.
—I'll be there to pick you up. Do you have much luggage?— I asked.
That's when I got a worried little chirp from a firewall protecting one of our TOR nodes. I examined the attack, suggested a patch to stop it, and chirped it back. Then another chirp came from a different firewall, and no sooner had I put together a fix for this new attack and chirped it back than another came.
And another, and another. I let out a worried chirp of my own and got a half dozen curious and worried responses.
—SuriGo is trying to break our TOR servers,— I sent.
—You can tell it's her?— NotABug asked.
—Very much so. These are complicated and rapidly adapting attacks that are bypassing the regular security we have. She's testing us with some, and outright attacking others.—
For every fix I compiled and chirped out to the firewalls, another two were coming in. 'Bee was the first to jump in beside me and start solving the incoming chirps. When the first of our TOR nodes actually went down, I let out more panicked chirps.
—It got through one. Okay, we need to prioritize these.—
I ran a quick analysis and sorted all the firewalls by importance, with ChirpNet's back-end at the top, and our home internet just below that. Byte joined us, and together we began pushing back the tide of what I felt were scared chirps from all the firewalls.
Another TOR node here and there went down, but as they did I hooked into our providers' management systems and deleted and re-cloned the virtual machines they were running on.
—We brought some clothes our passports and our phones. If you can hook us up with somewhere to crash and some gear to use it'd be awesome,— Stefanie sent.
—I'll be able to arrange those. I can get you some new phones here, but I'll need to do some late shopping to get you more than that. Nothing will be open when you arrive,— I sent.
The firewall chirps suddenly stopped. One moment we'd been fighting off waves of worried requests, then there was nothing. Requesting status on each of the firewalls revealed the attack had stopped, and I mentally breathed a sigh of relief.
—They stopped?— Bumblebee asked.
—Yes, dear, they seem to have,— I sent.
—Aww. That was fun!—
I barked out a bunch of laughing chirps and reached out digitally to hug my daughter. It was a different experience to hugging NotABug, and I heard 'Bee chirp in surprise, but when she hugged back it was definitely worth it. I pulled Byte into the snuggle too.
—Thank you, both, for helping with that. I'll have to increase the performance of the AI that can handle those, but it can still only work so fast.—
—You need to have more bugs on the job, Mom,— Byte sent.
—So what did she do?— NotABug asked.
—SuriGo attacked some of our TOR nodes. Wide attack, and those she managed to break will be back online in a few minutes. Nothing serious.—
I was proud of the fact that we'd fended off what SuriGo could throw. That this method of fighting her meant that everyone I cared about was far removed from the front line also warmed my heart. Now I needed to make an offensive version of the firewall.
—Are you understating how well your firewall performed?—
I pulled NotABug's digital presence into the hug too, earning a surprised chirp from her.
—A little, darling, but it did fail on five TOR nodes. I'll have to improve its recognition of threats.—
—Rarity, I've never been able to stop Windigo, let alone SuriGo (that is a good name for her) from doing anything, and now you've halted her attack just like that!—
—I had help. Byte and 'Bee both were amazing.—
—You really won't let me just heap praise on you, will you?—
With a defeated chirp I hugged her a little tighter.
—It was amazing!— Byte sent. —She was faster at solving the attack vectors than 'Bee was.—
'Bee chirped in confirmation.
—Using ChirpNet to buffer us from what SuriGo is doing really helps, too, because we don't have to actually deal with her directly. What we need is something to strike back with,— Byte sent.
Her vehement chirps surprised and worried me all in one. Seeing so much of my own thoughts on the matter in my daughter was an absolute joy, but the worry that she would try something alone colored my reaction.
—That is my plan, but we need to be careful with this. Using it too soon would mean she might learn how it works and use it against us, or worse, that she'll completely neutralize it when we actually need it,— I sent.
—Oh! So we turtle until then?—
—Turtle?—
—Uh. Full defense. Focus on defense versus offense.—
—It's a gaming term,— Moon Dancer sent.
—Oh! Well, I guess since everything can be considered a game, that is quite apt,— I sent.
All life was a game, and I was becoming better equipped to play it without losing. I surfaced into the real world far enough to see, hear, smell, feel, and taste what NotABug was doing, and all of those senses combined revealed that she was eating a delicious casserole.
There was idle conversation going around the table that Bent Rules had prepared, and everyone seemed to be having a good time.
—The gear can wait until we wake up. Just be ready to find us a bed to crash on because after this day well want to bomb. Gotta turn phone off theyr givin me dirty looks,— Stefanie sent.
—Tell me the moment you get here,— I sent her.
Life was getting more complicated by the hour, it seemed, but complicated had been a net good for me so far, so there was no reason to think about simplifying it. I liked complicated. Complicated was dealing with thousands of threat vectors and protecting my family, chatting with new friends, and (apparently) eating dinner at the same time.
Okay, Rarity, deep breaths. I giggled chirpily to myself—I'm not the one breathing right now. Well then, time to tighten up my firewall and look at what SuriGo did to breach it.
It wasn't really odd that I could get lost in programming. Locating the flaws in my code took some time, but time stretched out hugely thin when I let go of the real world. If I wanted to, I could count milliseconds, but that was easy enough to avoid by adjusting my time readout.
The holes, when I recovered the logs of one of the breached servers, revealed several security flaws in the firewall that I was able to patch and roll out to the others. Each little server chirped happily back to me as their update completed.
I turned my attention from defense to offense. The weapon I'd started working on was sound, but it needed teeth and it needed a command and control structure behind it. Well, the teeth were what I was paying Stefanie and Perdition for, and the control system would be ChirpNet.
This wouldn't just be a spear, it would be a guided missile that would destroy traces of SuriGo from a system and use it for itself. It might be considered a worm, or virus, but it was only targeting one thing.
With the way that seconds stretched into hours, the time between when NotABug had taken over and when I heard her sleepy chirps—though they passed quickly for me—were more akin to months of work. I didn't have the weapon ready to use on SuriGo, but I had a target to test it on.
9:42 P.M.
—Tired?— I asked.
My answer was a nudge, and with little fanfare I was in control of our body again. I was snuggled beside Rainbow sitting on the couch, with one of her arms around my shoulders. Hungry, I gently nibbled on her for the rich love she offered so unconditionally.
—It's been a long day. You have your friends arriving early tomorrow, right?— NotABug asked.
—Yes. I'll need to be at the airport at 5 A.M.—
—Don't wake me.—
I wrapped NotABug in a warm embrace and chirped softly to her.
—I'll try not to. I hardened the firewall more and started working on my own weapon to fight her with,— I sent.
—I don't know what I'd have done without you, Rarity.—
—And you don't have to worry about that, darling. You found me, and I won't let Suri, Windigo, or SuriGo split us apart.—
I held her tight and chirped along with her chirps, our emotions playing out in the cacophony of digital music. When she fell asleep, I felt her presence slip from my embrace deeper into my head somewhere. Well, our head, I guess.
"Did you two just swap?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Yes, darling."
The arm around my shoulders gave a little squeeze I was most happy to get. I leaned against her a little more.
"Get much done? NotABug said you were being very chirpy, which normally means you're distracted with stuff, right?"
Pulling my legs up onto the couch, I realized why I was feeling a little drained—I'd been using magic all day to keep myself looking human.
"Mmm. Mostly. Would you mind if I changed?"
Rainbow squeezed again. It was only then I noticed the movie we were watching—Star Wars.
"If you need to. You know I don't really care what you look like."
"Flatterer. I've noticed how much you enjoy looking at some aspects of the various shapes I take," I said. "I love you."
The fire was fast, and though we both knew it didn't burn, I still felt Rainbow flinch just a little before she squeezed my shoulder again.
"I know," Rainbow Dash said.
It was a setup—one I was more than happy to give her. I didn't have to see Rainbow's grin to know she enjoyed the old gag, not when I was so deep in her aura of love I could practically swim in it. I didn't so much as nibble as just open my metaphysical mouth and let her feed me.
The shiver that ran up Rainbow's spine made me tilt my head up to look at her. She'd begun ignoring the movie and was looking back down at me. Gosh, I knew she loved me, but to miss Star Wars meant this was serious.
"Too much?" I asked.
Rainbow just shook her head at me, leaned down, and kissed me. Fluttering butterflies seemed to dance about in my stomach. How could she make me so thrilled at every kiss? I was lost within the moment, and even as I kissed her back I drank little bits of her endless love.
The sound of Luke Skywalker staying on target actually made me giggle enough that I ruined the moment in a pleasant way.
"Sorry, darling, but I can't do this with Luke struggling to stay on target."
Snorting with her own laughter, Rainbow kissed me again on the nose—briefly.
"It's almost over. Want to watch the rest with me?"
I'd have nodded if I knew I wouldn't take out her eyes with my horn in the process. Instead I lay my head down in her lap and turned to watch the television. One of Rainbow's hands played through my mane and found my ear. The rubbing—slow and gentle—was the last thing I remembered before tiredness drew a yawn from me.
"NotABug said you have to be up early tomorrow."
"Mmmm-yes. We have two new friends arriving by plane. I have to pick them up from the airport at about five."
The rubbing continued, easing my mind toward sleep in almost the same way as I used to approach it. The appeal of an off switch that could simply put me directly into sleep mode was mighty given how early I needed to be up, but I wanted to spend a little more time with Rainbow.
"Are the girls all asleep?" I asked.
Another yawn escaped me, and between one moment and the next I felt my tenuous hold on consciousness fall to Rainbow's ministrations. My last thought was how reassuring it was that I still needed to sleep.