//------------------------------//
// 2. Scheming 
// Story: Reformation's Downside 
// by Moonlit Sky 
//------------------------------//

"Interesting word from Equestria," Sunset's text says. I go over to her apartment somewhat earlier that afternoon than I usually do.

Sunset greets me with a hug, far more warmly than I've ever seen her greet anyone else. It's transparent manipulation, of course, given my not-exactly-hidden interest in gaining the adoration of those around me; but that doesn't make it any less effective, after so long with only Aria and Sonata as company.

(Aria and Sonata themselves aren't here, having decided after the first month or so that they'd rather complain about my after-the-fact summaries of my meetings with Sunset than actually attend the meetings themselves.)

Once we're settled down on her couch, Sunset starts telling me about what she's found.

"Equestria has gotten a new band of heroes since the last time the mirror was open, apparently. They managed to dig up some high-powered magical focuses called the Elements of Harmony and used them to fight off... the Mare in the Moon? Or Princess Celestia's vanished sister? The rumors I could get my hooves on weren't clear there, beyond that now there's a third alicorn living in a previously-unused wing of the castle and calling herself another Princess." Sunset shuffles slightly in her seat. I can just imagine how she reacted to that when she first learned about it, considering her general bundle of issues. "Anyway. The Elements of Harmony are the important part. They're some of the most powerful artifacts in Equestria's recorded history. If I can get my hands on even one of them and take it into this world, I'll be able to draw on its power and become strong enough to fight Princess Celestia directly. And even just the leaked power from its use should be enough to power the three of you up enough to take hold of most of the world, considering how little magical resistance the humans here have."

"And yet you're here telling me about the Elements, rather than having already grabbed one." I raise an eyebrow. 

"Nopony did me the favor of mentioning the names of the new heroes in scrying distance of the mirror, beyond that they live in Ponyville." She snorted. "It would be too risky to break Princess Celestia's alarms around the mirror room and go there without a plan in the hopes of finding them just by wandering; I'd be on a tight schedule to get back before the mirror closes, and I'd only get the one shot before Princess Celestia realized her alarms weren't good enough and put up something with fewer holes. I haven't gotten to where I am by being impatient." She clenches a fist slightly. "Sooner or later, some time in the next few years, there will be an opportunity."

I shift over on the couch to lean against her shoulder. "How far is Ponyville from the mirror?"

"A bit under a day's train ride." She awkwardly shifts her head to rest on mine.

"Ah." Not much to plan, then; as she said, fitting two rides of that length into the two days before the mirror closes again without a plan is just too risky.

After a moment, she adds, "It's just like Princess Celestia, to have her new heroes live in an insignificant town in the middle of nowhere. Using them to keep a lid on the Everfree Forest, I suppose." There isn't the same strain of resentment that usually permeates her mentions of Celestia. Just the vaguely-conflicted tone of admiration that underlies them. Even now, I don't fully understand how she feels about her Princess.

"So what are you going to do when you win?"

"Huh?" Sunset turns her head to look at me quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"After you've deposed Celestia and the other Princesses and taken over Equestria. What are you going to do then?"

Sunset shrugs. "Go back to learning magic, I suppose. Fix everything Princess Celestia has broken, and avoid repeating her mistakes. Run her magic school the way it should be run, with students encouraged to become as powerful as possible rather than scolded when they try." She flops back against me, this time a bit more comfortably. "How about you? What are you and the other two Sirens going to do with this world, once you've taken control of everyone?"

"Me?" Suddenly I find myself a bit at a loss. I should remember that in the future, to be cautious about asking questions whose answers as applied to myself I haven't thought through. "W-well, I suppose... I'll just bask in it?" That doesn't sound right. "I mean, Aria and Sonata will probably need my help doing whatever they want to do, given their general incompetence. That'll probably take up a decent chunk of my time. And being waited on by adoring minions is its own reward, when it comes down to it. And I can always provoke people into fighting each other for me, when I get bored. But beyond that..." I wave my hand through the air. "My plans are open. I don't really do the whole 'having ideals' thing you do which sounds like it's going to be taking up a lot of your time."

"Mm." Sunset nods her head against mine, but doesn't answer beyond that. We fall into silence.

It's strange, suddenly spending my time with someone who can keep up with me and even sometimes challenge me. Not needing to do all the thinking in the room myself. I'm still not used to it, even after the past few months with Sunset, but I'm slowly getting there. It feels like I've had to think and grow more in the last few months than I did in the preceding century, now that there's someone around to actually push me into it, who might even surpass me if I get complacent. I enjoy the challenge of it.

I'm going to miss it, once Sunset has vanished through the mirror to rule Equestria.

After a few minutes, I reorient myself to lie on Sunset's lap, enjoying as she starts softly running her fingers through my hair, and still wondering how I'll be able to go back to not having anyone like that once she's gone.