//------------------------------// // Daybreak: Coffee Break // Story: Sigil of Souls, Stream of Memories // by Piccolo Sky //------------------------------// “First off, Ms. Fluttershy, I want to thank you personally for agreeing to the goodwill tour. It definitely means a lot to everyone in my administration as well as to Manehattan at large. Please, allow me to shake your hand.” Fancy Pants punctuated this by extending his hand forward. Fluttershy stared at it only a moment before she forced a pleasant smile and accepted. She looked around the room and extended the same smile, just in time to get a puff of flash powder as the photographer snapped a picture of her, to the tune of many other heads of state and government officials, likewise smiling, applauding her. She did her best to keep that smile on her face even as she blinked to clear the spots from her eyes, and as soon as that was done she did her best to stay calm and pleasant surrounded by so many strangers. It wasn’t easy. If not for the fact that she had talked the Grand Chancellor into allowing her to bring Angel in a satchel at her side for “stress management”, she probably wouldn’t have had the confidence at all. When the applause finally died down, the Grand Chancellor took a step back. This allowed another official the opportunity to step forward, still smiling just as much, and gestured to the table in front of him. “Now, as you can see, everything here in your itinerary has been prepared. Every stop on your trip has been approved and accommodations have been made for both you and your animals. This path right here,” He gestured to a map of Greater Everfree, and a route with various waypoints marked on it. “Shows you every stop along the way, and every connection is either by rail or steam carriage. Of course, you will have an escort with you at all times, in addition to the local authorities anticipating your arrival, so there is nothing to fear.” He smiled a bit wider. “The first stop on the trip is right here in the main city of Manehattan, in the old city hall in the eastern borough.” The mere sight of the map, the distance, and all the major population centers involved caused Fluttershy to reach into her satchel, scoop Angel out, and then begin to hug him for support--much to his chagrin. "It's very simple. We'll be sending some of our own state department officials along with you. They'll handle the introductions and presentations. You just wait until you're invited out at each location, say hello and wave to the people," She hugged Angel a bit more tightly just for that. "And then, once that is done, you introduce yourself and say a few words about yourself." She gulped on hearing that. "S-s-say a few words about myself?" "Of course! We'd prefer...obviously...if you'd omit the parts regarding your involvement in affairs of international concern, but telling them about what it's like to have one of these Promethian Sigils, how you feel, how you go about day to day...just basically reassuring them that you're still living out a normal routine with a normal life." "B-B-But...I'm not living out a normal routine..." "Well...normal-ish, one might say. The important thing is to reassure the public that these individuals have no reason to immediately be afraid of themselves and others have no reason to immediately fear them, and you're living proof of that." "But...but what if they...they act like the people who went wild?" The official's smile ebbed a bit. "Ms. Fluttershy, the whole purpose of this visit is to calm the public down--not get them dwelling on what-if scenarios. Please remember that." "Ok..." The smile returned. "Good. And once that is done, you can answer a few questions." "Wh-wh...what?!" "Not many, not many! Only three or four at most! The state department will handle the rest! Then maybe you can shake a few hands, use some of your power to heal a scraped knee or something, you know? Anything to help give a more beneficial image." "But...but what if-" Fluttershy cut herself off as she felt a furious rapping against her side. She looked down and saw she was now clutching Angel so tightly the rabbit was almost throttled and desperately trying to get her attention. "Oops! Sorry!" She exclaimed, releasing him at once. As the rabbit gasped for air, however, he also gave her what seemed to be a dirty look before leaping back into the satchel. "Now don't tense up about this, Ms. Fluttershy," the official continued. "I'm sure there will be some bumps in the road and getting used to, but everyone here is confident in your success and grateful for your cooperation. This promises to be a major benefit for everyone involved." He held out his hand to her to shake. "Very good luck to you, madam." Swallowing a rather large lump in her throat, Fluttershy reached out and nervously took it. "Very...good luck to me, too." Fluttershy hadn't been this nervous in a long time, which was understandable considering she had gone from effectively zero human contact to a public face in a little over 48 hours. Bright and early the next day she finally packed up her animals and left for the public forum of city hall of Manehattan itself. Everything was already prepared by the time she departed Rarity's business. Wagons had been made up for her animals, a steam carriage was waiting for her personally, and they even provided her with a nicer wardrobe to wear along the trip. (Although she was somewhat embarrassed to be changing in the carriage itself.) That, unfortunately, did little to assuage her nervousness all the way to city hall. She was shaking like a leaf and obsessively petting Angel as he sat in her lap so much that even the rabbit seemed to grow tired of it by the time they got there. Ironically, it might have been a good thing that she was so centered on her personal anxieties that she didn't see the stream of reporters passing their own carriage or following it all the way there, to say nothing of the local officials and hundreds of concerned residents. Even with the public appearance being limited to only so many attendees, the area was rather jam packed by the time she arrived. Naturally, they escorted her in through the back ways with a full escort, although she wasn't able to avoid at least six different reporters snapping her picture on the way in. She didn't have the heart to say that being surrounded by the escort made her about as nervous as being surrounded by the crowds, and she was still gulping and sweating once they got backstage in spite of having a curtain between her and the crowded forum. The mere presence of officials and police officers all around the back area was bad enough. Especially since many of them apparently were as nervous as the basic populace, and kept giving her uneasy looks. "Now this forum should be a bit bigger than the normal goodwill tour stops, but don't tense up," the same official from yesterday coached her. "Just stand right here as they field the questions until they tell you to come out, and then you'll be cut off and escorted backstage as soon as they feel you've fielded enough. Sound fine?" "Ok..." she spoke in a barely audible whisper. "This will go great. Trust me." "Ok..." He stepped aside afterward. Fluttershy was left listening to the speakers at the podium just on the other side of the curtain. It was quieted considerably as a result, but she was still able to make it out. She heard quite a few questions that challenged the assumptions that the government was making: namely stating all the reasons there was to be nervous about individuals with "symbols on their hands" and asking if the grand chancellor had considered all of this before endorsing the idea of "eidolons". Still others asked if this was in response to a seeming militarization of the same and if this was a sign of increased military action on Manehattan's part. By the time they got to questions about Fillydelphia supposedly walking back on its treaties with Manehattan, the questions were cut off and the fateful moment arrived. "I am pleased to introduce one such individual who has been impacted by this 'symbol phenomenon', Ms. Fluttershy." There was no chorus of applause, but one of the police nearby looked at Fluttershy when she failed to move and gestured forward; indicating that was her cue. She swallowed, her knees knocking, in response. The officer gestured several more times with her either not responding or looking to step back. It wasn't until the one on stage once again introduced her that the officer stepped forward and moved the curtain aside. Now partially exposed, she yelped, whimpered a little, but then moved forward and stepped out from behind the curtain. It was worse than she thought. The entire forum, in spite of supposedly being a "limited" event, was filled from side to side with people. She could only make out the back support columns for the chamber and the exit doors. Everything else was a flood of faces. It didn't help that no less than thirty flashbulbs went off as soon as she risked a step forward. She nearly turned and bolted right back behind the curtains, but somehow she took a deep breath and forced herself to practically slink out to the podium. As soon as she stood there, she felt like she was on public display for an execution. She had to swallow two different times just to whet her throat enough to speak. When she did, even the first row was unable to hear her. "Um...hello." Silence in the room for several moments. The official that had introduced her was nearby, and was now looking a little uncomfortable himself. He leaned in closer to her, which made her jump back a little before remembering herself, and made a gesture behind the podium to say a bit more. Looking back out, she swallowed again. "Nice...nice...to, um...meet you." The official stood there rather uneasily, as Fluttershy herself cringed a bit and went dead silent. After several moments of awkward silence, he realized he wasn’t going to get any more out of her than that, and finally turned to the audience. “Alright then, without further ado, Ms. Fluttershy will now take several of your questions.” The room became far more boisterous at that, with every reporter immediately raising his or her hand and shouting out their question. Even if Fluttershy hadn’t been startled at the gesture, the result still would have been such a cacophony that it was impossible to make out what any one individual was saying. She nearly yelped and ducked for cover behind the podium, and would have if Angel hadn’t let out a loud growl to get her proverbial “head in the game”. Nevertheless, she could only stand there petrified for several moments. Again realizing she wasn’t being any help, the official began to sweat as he turned to the audience and pointed out. “Um…you, sir, with the Continental.” The rest of the reporters quickly quieted down as the singled out one spoke up distinctly. “Ms….Fluttershy? How exactly did you come about your current affliction?” She swallowed another lump. “Um…” Immediately, the official intervened. “I remind you that the Manehattan government does not consider anyone it has designated an ‘eidolon’ as someone with a sickness or medical condition in the traditional sense, but more of a unique state of individual.” With that, he quickly turned to Fluttershy again and motioned for her to proceed. Yet another lump. “I…um…well…I just…” She degenerated into a mutter. The reporter blinked. “Excuse me?” “That is…well…” More muttering. “Could…you perhaps speak a little louder?” “I said…I…um…woke up with it one day.” The reporter raised an eyebrow, clearly having hoped for more than that, and only slowly writing it down. After a moment, another reporter raised her own hand. “Yes,” the official called, “you, ma’am.” “Manehattan Inquirer. Ms. Fluttershy, have you been afraid at any point that you might begin to…shall we say…act as irrationally as other individuals who have had these mysterious symbols appear on their hands?” She gave a quiver. “Oh… Oh yes.” Again, there was silence. The reporter looked unnerved. “Could you…elaborate on that a bit?” “I’ve been, um…v-v-very afraid.” Sweating a little, the official quickly looked over the crowd and picked another one. “Um, I see the one with the Everfree Star has her hand up?” “Yes!” she quickly spoke up. “Ms. Fluttershy, is it true that you have begun to exhibit unusual abilities yourself since your symbol confirmed your new status as an eidolon?” “I…um…that is…I really don’t think of myself as an eye-donut,” she quietly answered, shrinking a little now from increasing nervousness. “But, um…well…maybe…maybe just a little…” “Would you say that you are capable of doing the same damage that Trottingham’s rumored ‘Fire Witch’ did on her strike on Manehattan soil several weeks ago?” “Oh…” she shuddered again. “My, um…my power isn’t so…er, bad as that. At least…I really hope not…” A pause. “If, um…someone has a cut or a scrape, or maybe just a plant that’s wilting…?” Letting out a bit of a moan himself, the official pointed to another person. “I’m with the Regional Herald. Is there any truth to the rumor that the administration is using this as a smoke screen for the supposed predicted GDP downturn next month?” Fluttershy went a bit wide-eyed. “I…I don’t really know anything about-” Yet hearing that question was like blood in a shark tank. Soon, another reporter blurted out their question. “Has there been any correlation with the decreased incidents of public violent outbursts from eidolons and the supposed resurgence in adherents to Harmonia?” “Er…” “Do you feel that you might become a danger to other members of society?” “Uh…” “Do you think that you and other eidolons might be impressed into government service by complying with the Manehattan Doctrine?” By now, Fluttershy was paralyzed with anxiety by the influx of questions, but as it turned out that was the straw that broke the camel’s back. As the questions continued to pile up and began to speak over one another, the official quickly stepped forward to the podium, putting a hand out and practically shoving Fluttershy away, before standing before it. “Thank you all, no more time for questions today, please direct all further inquiries to the state department, thank you again.” At once, he backed up to push Fluttershy behind the curtain, and she was just in time to spot the others quickly getting brushed off stage before the cloth dropped over her and the official; cutting off the growing sound of more reporters throwing out more mixtures of questions and near-accusations. They were still coming up when the official let out a large, loud sigh and turned back to her. He remained that way for a fraction of a second before forcing a smile. “Well, we can’t expect them all to go swimmingly, and that was only the first one. Plenty more where that came from. At least we’ve officially introduced society to a real live eidolon, right?” Fluttershy, still mostly paralyzed from the onrush of questions (all of which were still coming through the curtain), was only able to barely manage a small squeak. “Yay.” “Well, don’t worry. The next few crowds will be mostly civilians and local officials rather than these man-eating reporters. I’m sure you’ll be in much better shape for the next 30 stops.” The woman’s eyes shrank into pinpricks. “Th-th…th-th-th…th-th…” She was still trying to calm down enough to say the word when she was approached by another Manehattan official and led toward the steam carriage. True to the official’s word, the next stop was on the periphery of Manehattan city proper and had more civilians and less reporters. Unfortunately, things didn’t go much easier for Fluttershy there either. She was still jittery from the first stop when she reached this one. So much so that by the time the questions started to come out, she had to be almost pushed on stage and then could only mumble one-word answers to a fistful of questions. There were more Manehattan officials there to field most of the content, but nevertheless it was something of an embarrassment for herself when she was asked by one reporter as to what she thought was the cause of the emergence of all of these ‘eidolons’ and if it had anything to do with the darkness leaving most of Greater Everfree, and her only answer was a muted: “ok”. She hardly even noticed one of the reporters, for a local newsletter rather than a paper, asking her the question of if she thought this meant the return of Harmonium to the world. She was too busy shaking and focusing on Angel now desperately trying to indicate to her to “get a grip”. At any rate, the conference ended soon after almost as abruptly as before, and she was off again. She currently found herself back in the steam carriage, getting a bit sore from the ride but focusing more on her anxieties than anything else. She hardly noticed the buildings begin to slowly get smaller around her as she went along and the crowds begin to slowly thin out. She only sighed as she continued to brush Angel’s fur while he rested on her lap. After a whole day of petting and support, he expected payment in full by a pampering session. The steam carriage came to a halt again. She was used to it by now in the big city, although it only made her more eager to get out of it. She looked out the window as she absent-mindedly kept brushing Angel’s tail, trying to get the fluff just the way he liked it. Her mind barely registered the crowds; even the one walking by holding up a hand-painted sign saying: “A New Day is Coming!” or the numerous business types frowning at their journal reports for the afternoon. “I’m just not very good at this…” she lamented aloud at last. “I mean, I knew I wouldn’t be that good when I started, but I didn’t expect so many people to gather at these meetings. And I didn’t expect them all to ask so many hard questions…” If possible, the rabbit seemed to eyeroll. She caught this, making her sigh again. “I know that look…and you’re right. I never should have volunteered. I just…just was tired of sitting around and feeling so helpless. I thought maybe this was a way I could help.” The rabbit let out a little noise. “I know, I know… I can’t even believe myself some days. I told myself I’d just tend to animals from now on, but…but everything changed after meeting Twilight and the others. I can do a lot more than just care for animals now. And…and…” She let out a shudder and bowed her head, cringing a little. “Can I really just hide around like this? Knowing I have this power that can help people?” A pause. “That’s right… I can help people now, can’t I? Doesn’t that mean I should? Even…even if…” She was cut off as the steam carriage began to roll again. It gave her a start, nearly making her brush too hard and causing her to sit upright. Angel gave a small growl, and Fluttershy nearly turned to apologize to him. Before she could, however, her eyes drifted back up over the window and saw through the glass pane of a small coffee shop. She spotted something in there. When she did, for once, she forgot all about Angel. She looked for one full second before the carriage rolled further beyond, causing the window to vanish from view behind one of the structural columns that made up the building, and the individual inside as well. “Was…was that…?” She stared a moment longer before she turned forward. Quickly, she picked Angel up and put him gently to one side, and then leaned over to the divider between the back of the carriage and the driver’s seat. She put her face up to it. “Um…um…excuse me, but could we please stop for just a moment?” In a quiet room, someone seated right next to Fluttershy would have had a hard time hearing her. Over the sound of the steam engine it was impossible. “Um…pardon me, but…could you please stop here, sir?” The rise in volume was imperceptible. “S…sir?” As she continued to speak softly, Angel, getting up and looking annoyed, rolled his bunny eyes again before he quickly drew himself up and hopped forward; bounding so hard that he flew right off of the cushion, through the open window, and collided his feet with the back of the driver’s head. Instantly, it was smacked forward so fast and hard that it wheeled around and knocked itself on top of the hard steering wheel. Shocked, stunned, and now in pain, the driver let out an exclamation and an expletive before slamming down the brakes and grasping his forehead to recover. Fluttershy was rather alarmed, even more so when she was nearly thrown down from the sudden stop of the steam carriage, but as soon as it halted she quickly nodded in appreciation. “Thank you.” She grasped the door handle and opened it up. Taking a deep breath to steady herself from her social anxiety, she climbed out of the carriage and down into the street. As she made for the sidewalk, the driver was left dumbfounded and stuck in traffic as he tried to make sense of what went on, but as for Fluttershy she steeled herself, cringed her way into the busy roads, and made back for the coffee house as fast as she could. It took her a bit of time to make her way past the people, but she reached the building and went in through the front door immediately. She looked about for only a moment before she spotted it: the same wide-brimmed, inclined hat accentuated by a long feather. Zeroing in on her, she took a deep breath as she would be navigating a crowded, close-quartered establishment, but made her way toward the hat. After walking only a short distance, she spotted its owner: a woman seated at a table for one with a newspaper raised in front of her and daintily sipping tea. Between her high collar on her elegant dress, her large hat brim, the newspaper, and the teacup to her lips, it was almost impossible to make out anything about her. That didn’t stop Fluttershy from walking in closer, however. Once she was just at a distance to be out of personal space, but facing the woman, she stopped. She looked over her a moment, but though she lowered her teacup she couldn’t make out much more. She said nothing and gave no notice of Fluttershy, at least apparently not. She turned right back to her paper. Fluttershy hesitated a moment, looking around herself, before she ventured forward. The woman never looked up from her paper. She only sipped her tea once but paid no other notice. At last, she made it close enough to halt momentarily. She swallowed and coughed once, clearing her throat. “Um…” she began timidly, still getting no reaction from the woman, “Rarity?” The woman didn’t react at all for a few seconds. Then, one of her hands left her paper and went to the table at her side, near an empty seat. She tapped it before returning to her paper. “Rarity…is…is that you?” Again, the hand went out and tapped, this time coughing a little. “I mean, I’m sorry, but you look a lot like my friend, and…I was just wondering…” Coughing even more loudly and intentionally, she reached out and this time patted the seat next to her with growing irritability. “Oh,” she shrank back, seeing the whole act as hostile. “I’m very sorry… I’ll just be going no-” “Fluttershy!” Rarity’s voice came out through pressed lips in a rasping whisper. “Kindly take a seat and stop drawing attention to us!” The woman let out a small yipe before quickly doing as she was told. Rarity, on her part, held up her menu just long enough to roll her eyes. “I’m sorry…” she meekly apologized. She sighed as she lowered her newspaper slightly. “Think nothing of it, dear. I’m the one who should apologize for the rude reception, but I am trying to keep a low profile at the moment.” She glanced over to her from behind the newspaper, giving her a small smile. “It’s wonderful to see you here, to be honest. When I woke up in a livestock feeding trough of all things, all alone, I had assumed the worst from everyone else. However, I did catch wind of your goodwill tour in the morning paper so I knew you had to be alright. But why aren’t the others with you, darling?” “Oh…they’re not with me,” she meekly answered. “I just happened to see you when we were passing by in the carriage. I…I kind of hoped you knew where they were.” Rarity’s own smile faded. “I’m afraid not… As I said, I was the only one around when I woke up. I was fortunate that I was already in Fillydelphia in a township I was familiar with. I suppose the same thing happened to you?” Fluttershy nodded sadly. “I was even luckier, though. I was almost in Manehattan. I got back to the animals before any of them could take a turn for the worse.” She shook her head. “I haven’t heard anything from the others in weeks, though…” Rarity looked uneasy at that, but forced a smile. “Well, if the two of us ended up alright, I’m sure the others are fine. It’s just…just taking them a while to get back to Manehattan is all.” “Oh! Um…speaking of that…” Fluttershy finally spoke up. “If you’re in Manehattan, how come you haven’t gone back to Carousel Boutique yet? Sassy and Coco have been running around ragged trying to get the orders filled, and they’re both worried sick about you coming back.” Now the designer really did look uncomfortable, enough to lower her newspaper a bit more. “Is that so?” she answered more softly. Her eyes drifted to the table in front of her. “I was afraid of that. I had hoped to be back by now myself, or that things could at least run smoothly without me for the indefinite future. And I really didn’t mean to make anyone so concerned…” She took in a deep breath and shook her head. “But I’m afraid there are some matters that are more important to me even than my business, and I’m afraid I am not in a position to return just yet. I can’t. That’s why I’ve been in hiding; keeping myself as inconspicuous as possible in this establishment.” Fluttershy couldn’t help but be a bit confused. Rarity’s outfit was so stylish and eye-catching, especially with the wide hat with the long feather, that it was almost impossible not to have one’s eyes drawn to her as soon as they stepped inside. She decided not to be rude about it, however. “You’ve been…hiding?” “I decided to go with one of Shadow Spade’s more classic ensembles. I felt a need to evoke an aura of feminine mystique so long as I’m doing this secretive business.” “Ok, but…why are you in hiding?” Rarity paused. Her face grew far more serious and grim. She put down the paper, looked about for a moment, and then finally scooted her chair closer to Fluttershy to speak with her more quietly. “Look over there. The table in the far corner.” Fluttershy hesitated only a moment before looking. It took her a few seconds before she finally realized where Rarity is indicating. When she did, she saw a pair of men in suits sitting at one table drawn a bit farther away from the others, speaking in quiet voices over their coffee. However, of the two of them, only one of them looked particularly well-to-do and a mark of the normal elite of Manehattan. The other one’s suit was a bit more worn, and his face slightly unshaven with a more overgrown haircut. “The first building I came upon in Fillydelphia,” Rarity began to speak quietly, “was this ghastly establishment that I wouldn’t have willingly wandered into normally if it was the only building for fifty miles. But I simply had to freshen up before I would take another step after landing in that filth. Apparently the stench was enough for them to let me use the washroom, but the walls in that place were paper thin. I heard that…” She wrinkled her nose in disgust, as if it sickened her to say the next part. “…gentleman over there wander in and start asking the local proprietor where he might find someone who was…willing to sell him a ‘Strawberry Tart’.” Fluttershy went rigid at the mention of that phrase. Some of the color drained from it, and she seemed to almost melt into her seat. This wasn’t lost on Rarity. “I see I hardly need to explain the local colloquialism. Apparently it isn’t unique to Manehattan… The proprietor said that they didn’t deal in that sort of thing, but that they could put him in contact with someone who did. Specifically, a contact for…the Horned Trip.” If possible, Fluttershy grew whiter yet. She couldn’t even manage her “oh my”s. She looked nearly ready to pass out on the spot. “Merciful heavens,” Rarity spoke up, “I didn’t mean to frighten you so, but it seems you know all about them as well. Don’t fear, darling. They don’t have any of their type here. Just that point of contact over there. A Mr. Clamp. I happened to catch his name as he came in. In fact, I made a point of it. Along with a transition of some letter that seemed quite fat enough to carry a hefty amount of bills.” Fluttershy swallowed and stammered several times, aborting her speech each time, before she was finally able to form a faint whisper. “W-W-Why w-w-would you w-w-want t-t-to d-d-deal with them?” Now it was Rarity’s turn to look uncomfortable. She turned back to her paper, looking almost like she was going to brush off the question. She swallowed once, and finally exhaled. “I loathe talking about it. A part of me wants to forget it ever happened. However, I’ve come this far, and you’re here as well, so I suppose if I owe you an explanation for why I haven’t returned to Manehattan or Carousel Couture then you should know.” She took in a deep breath, steadying herself, and began. “My mother and father, the former owners and proprietors of Carousel Couture, were both in Griffonstone with most of the older staff attempting to expand the business when the Lunar Fall hit. They were…unfortunately in the northeastern portion at the time.” Realizing what that meant, Fluttershy bowed her head. “I’m sorry.” Rarity sighed. “Well…pish posh to that, darling,” she muttered halfheartedly. “Most of us lost someone close to us in the first few weeks. Why should I have been an exception? However, that did leave Sweetie Belle and I alone with a company barely capable of standing on one leg let alone two.” Fluttershy looked up. “Um…Sweetie Belle?” “My little sister,” Rarity answered, a trace of a smile painting her face. “She was quite the little angel. She may not have quite shared my talent for fashion, and she did tend to be a bit…well, shall we say, overexuberant at times when it came to trying to do things…enough to where I regret I became cross more than once…” She trailed for a moment here, her smile ebbing. “But…looking back on those times…I realize I should have liked them for what they were. She was always eager to please. She just wanted to help out and do her part too now than our parents were gone. I should have appreciated that more. Even her…more unique attempts at singing local ballads.” Her head bowed a bit lower. “It’s true what they say about how you never truly miss something until it’s gone…” She held a moment, then shook her head and continued. “For a time, it was nothing but the two of us and whatever employees were left like Ms. Pommel and Ms. Saddles struggling to keep our debtors pacified long enough to actually start producing something we could sell. Scraping by, everyone had to do their part. Sweetie Belle was no different. She constantly offered to help in any way she could. Making coffee or breakfast for overnight hours, doing runs for special orders of thread or fabric, running letters… Most of the time she found a way to make a mess of those things, at least at first. I dare say she managed to start a fire in the kitchen once trying to make juice.” She smirked and snickered a bit at this memory, before growing somber. “She was good at running messages, though. And it saved on telegrams or couriers with what little money we could manage. One morning, I needed her to run a message to one of our distributors saying that the next order would be two hours late due to supply issues.” She let out a slow exhale. “She didn’t come back when I expected, but I didn’t mind that much. Things were changing so much in Manehattan with so many businesses changing hands and going under, and always some panic about Light Eaters and Nighttouched, that I thought she simply got distracted again or was taking her time. Then came the message from our distributor asking why we were late. It took me several hours of back and forth before I realized the message never arrived.” Rarity looked up and exhaled again. This time, she began to stiffen up. Her lips started to quiver, but she forced them back. “I…don’t want to go into the details of what happened over the next few weeks. The searching…the inquiries…the calls to the police…but most of all…” She swallowed. She cupped a hand to her mouth. “Most of all…how I became aware of just how many illicit businesses had started up in Manehattan following the Lunar Fall. How some of them dealt with human trafficking. How…how…” Her voice began to crack. “How they favored children around Sweetie Belle’s age…” Fluttershy sank more into her chair, but said nothing. “I…I didn’t want to believe it…but eventually the lead they picked up said they spotted someone matching her description in the vicinity of one of those parts of town known for…for you-know-what. They tried to close those places down whenever they could, but there weren’t enough of them anymore for stopping all of them. And each time they did, they never found Sweetie Belle. Then one day they…they…” Rarity sniffled at this point. Quickly, she grabbed for her pocket handkerchief. She brought it to her face and quickly began to wipe at her eyes, but tears were already running by then. “I don’t think I’ll talk any more about this, or I’ll make a scene that I won’t be able to rein in,” she admitted bitterly. Nevertheless, it took her several minutes of sniffling and wiping before she was finally able to compose herself. By then, much of her makeup had run and she was forced to wipe it off, using the tea holder plate as a mirror to clean up. The whole time, Fluttershy stayed quiet and said no more. She finally took in a deep breath. “Suffice to say what they found…made it clear that I wasn’t going to be seeing my little sister ever again.” She nearly choked again on getting this part out, and was forced to quickly drink some tea to steady herself before wiping at her eyes again. She weakly laughed. “Look at me… Blubbering on like this. You’d…you’d think after seven years I’d be over it…” “It’s ok,” Fluttershy spoke in a near whisper. “The bottom line,” Rarity accented with a sniffle, putting her handkerchief away, “is that out of all of the cads and ruffians who have thrived off of the misery of people since the Lunar Fall, I have reason to loathe human traffickers most of all. As unusual and unwieldy as I’ve found this new power that I gained from a Promethian Sigil, it occurred to me when I encountered this particular lout that I had it in my power to do what the police have been unable to accomplish. After some debate over the matter, I decided upon it. I’m taking this into my own hands. I’m finding who is in charge of the Horned Trip by tracing them one person at a time, and once I do I’m putting a stop to this once and for all.” Fluttershy looked up a bit more at that. “Really? But…but what about Carousel Couture? Or the Manehattan government?” Rarity grimaced a little. “That’s why I’ve had to be incognito about this. If I go back to the Manehattan government now, my face will become too well known for me to sneak about tailing any of these suspects. And as much as I hate leaving Carousel Couture to fend for itself, I simply can’t look the other way for something like this. Not when this opportunity is so close at hand. Even if I can’t stop it myself, perhaps I can at least make some discovery that could get it shut down.” Fluttershy was quiet for a few moments. “Then…what are you going to do?” “Well, therein I seem to have hit something of a ‘snag’, darling,” Rarity sighed. “You see, I followed this man back here from Fillydelphia and I tracked him down to this hooligan, who should be headed back that way. But it’s extremely hard for Manehattanites to cross the border nowadays. What with the icing relations between the two. And there’s no way I could make it without the proper papers or identification. I’m sure this cad has his ways, but those aren’t the sorts of connections I have.” She sighed. “Where is Rainbow Dash when I really need her? And don’t get me started on how hard it was to get this current ensemble. I’m somewhat impressed at my own resourcefulness at being able to scare it up, but after three different outfits there’s no way I’ll be able to keep up this pace forev-” She suddenly cut herself off, her eyes lighting up. “Wait…wait, that would be perfect!” Fluttershy looked up in a bit of curiosity, before shrinking back as Rarity turned to her beaming and nearly getting in her face. “You could arrange for it, darling!” The woman was struck at being caught on the spot. “Wha…m-m-me?” “Why yes, Fluttershy! You’re heading right into Fillydelphia yourself on your current route, aren’t you? And if the papers were correct, you should be crossing the border as early as tomorrow evening!” She paused. “Well, y-y-yes, but what-” “You’d make the perfect cover for me then! I’ll simply stow away with you! You’ll still be able to do your goodwill tour, and I’ll have the perfect means to track this man deeper into Fillydelphia and find out whatever channel he’s operating on! Two birds with one stone!” Fluttershy swallowed a little, beginning to sweat. “I…I’m not so sure about…” “Oh, come now, darling. We’ve finally gotten back together, and this is a way for us to stick to one another like glue until we find the others. In the meantime, we both get what we want. You’d like to see that dreadful human trafficking ring brought to justice as well, wouldn’t you?” She grit her teeth and gulped even deeper. “Well…I mean…y-y-yes, but-” “Then please, Fluttershy!” she insisted more imploringly, clasping her hands and leaning into her. “If not for me, then for Sweetie Belle! It might be just a tad bit of abuse of privilege, but it’s for a worthy cause!” The woman continued to hesitate. As much as she had been through so far, this made her look more nervous than anything yet. Even their confrontation with Nightmare Moon. She was quiet for a very long time. Enough to where the two men they were monitoring finished their discussion and were packing up to leave. That only made Rarity look even more insistently at her. “When…when you put it that way…I…I suppose…you could meet up at our next stop and then hide in the steam carriage. Once we leave Manehattan, there’s only supposed to be three escorts with me. I could…say that you’re, um…uh…my, uh…” Rarity, noticing she was fumbling, spoke up. “Linguistic specialist?” “Um…sure. They shouldn’t know what you look like, and I could say the government assigned you to me to help with public appearances…” A pause. “I think I’d probably do these public meetings easier if you were here anyway, Rarity. And I did agree to go on this to try and find you and the rest of the ladies, so even if I had to tell the truth it probably wouldn’t be that bad…” “Oh, thank you, Fluttershy!” Rarity exclaimed, reaching out and clasping her hands and shaking them. The move startled her a bit, but she formed a weak smile and allowed it to continue. “You don’t know how much this means to me! And I think you’re quite right! With two of us together, I feel better than ever about this whole affair!” Fluttershy managed a weak nod as Rarity slid back into her seat. She quickly drained her own teacup and began to gather her things. “I better hurry along myself if we’re going to be meeting at your next stop. Oh, on that note, where exactly is your driver taking you this evening?” “My…driver?” Fluttershy blinked, before realization suddenly came upon her. She looked to one of the wall clocks. “Um, Rarity, how long have we been here?” “No more than half an hour, darling. Why?” She didn’t answer. She merely gulped as she looked outside. Only now did she realize the traffic out there wasn’t moving, and that at this point the drivers were beginning to exit and look rather irritable. “Oh my.”