//------------------------------//
// XI:Changeling 
// Story: Equestrian Girl 
// by HorseStories 
//------------------------------//

The door to the apartment opened slowly, the woman behind it glancing nervously back and forth as she stepped forth from it, as if making sure she wasn't being followed. Clutching her bag with a vice-like grip, she stepped out of the doorway and returned to her car. Unlocking the doors, Beatrix threw her bag onto the passenger side, before pausing once more to glance around.

She was certain nobody had seen them, but that didn't make her feel any more at ease. Today had taken weeks of planning, and the last thing she needed was for all her efforts to be ruined by some busybody seeing more than they were supposed to. Her eyes scanned the darkness, straining to see anything in the dim light the lunar glow afforded. 

Satisfied she was unsurveilled by prying eyes, Beatrix got back in and started the engine, a quiet smile crossing her face as she heard the engine roar to life. All of her efforts would be well rewarded, of course. And, with Shim's assistance, there was nothing more left to do.





Sunset spent the night fluttering in and out of sleep, never truly able to relax. Every time she woke, she shot straight up in bed, heart leaping out of her mouth as she waited for assailants that never came. It didn't help to see Flash sleeping like a log on the floor, either. With each passing minute, it became clearer to her that she was no safer here than back home.

Slowly but surely, dawn arrived, the first beams of sunlight from the breaking sun bringing an abrupt end to any hopes she  might have had of getting any more sleep. Getting dressed as silently as she could, Sunset tiptoed downstairs and slipped out of the front door. All things considered, she'd sooner face her hunters than explain her presence to Flash's parents.

As soon as she stepped out the front door, she felt her heart begin to race once more. Exhausted, disoriented, and with a long walk home ahead of her, Sunset had once found herself a sitting duck. Silently cursing herself for her total lack of foresight, she pulled her hood up and set off at a brisk pace. 

The hilt of the kitchen knife digging into her stomach was a constant nagging reminder that she was no closer to solving the riddles of her stalker than she had been yesterday. Yet at the same time, she could feel some of the initial anxiety abating after two nights of nothing. Her mind became clearer with every step, and she began to turn the events of the past fourty-eight hours over in her head with fresh clarity.

A Royal Guard detachment would have surely arrested her by now. Even if they hadn't known where she'd slept last night, they would have had ample opportunity over the past six months. So, she wasn't about to be attacked by Celestia's agents - a realization that filled her with a strange mix of relief and disappointment. Although she wouldn't have to face off against a team of trained soldiers, she also wouldn't be getting her hands on an Equestrian artefact any time soon.

And yet, the note had clearly been drawn by somepony who knew her from Equestria. There was no way they could have recreated her likeness so specifically otherwise. Another castaway? Possible, but unlikely. The Crystal Mirror had been a closely guarded secret by Celestia, and she had controlled entry - and presumably exit - with an iron hoof.

Of course, all of this was pure conjecture. Sunset was just wildly speculating - she should focus on the specifics. Namely, that whoever had left the note was afraid to face her one-to-one. Instead, they opted to play psychological games from the shadows. What did that prove? That they were weak. If 'they' were even operating as a group at all.

The number one rule of countering psychological warfare, of course, was not to play along. Sunset should ignore the note, and any others that followed. Instead, she should try to force a confrontation, be as bold as possible. Whatever they were trying to make her do, she should do the opposite. As long as she didn't lose her cool, she was winning.

And she should tell Shim. In fact, she should have told her from the beginning. Despite everything, the two of them had plenty of common interests. One of which was not getting abducted by interdimensional hitmen.

After two nights of unease and paranoia, this realization filled her with no small measure of relief. Rounding a corner with a fresh spring in her step, Sunset reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. She should call Rainbow Dash and apologize hanging up so suddenly last night. 





"Shim?"

Unusually, Shim didn't have her face buried in a book or a stack of papers, nor was she hunched over her laptop. Instead, she was reclining on a chair, in which she almost fell over backwards when Sunset walked in. Gripping the armrests as if her life depended upon it, her eyes widened and face visibly paled as she saw Sunset standing in the doorway.

Sunset froze in the doorway, completely thrown by her reaction. "Sorry! Didn't mean to surprise you. Are you all right?"

It took a few seconds from Shim to respond. When she did, Sunset was surprised to hear an unusual hoarseness to her voice, as if she had spent the past few hours talking to herself - though, knowing Shim, that was entirely possible.  "No. No, I'm... fine. Didn't get much sleep last night."

She looked like it. Shim's hair was even more frazzled than usual, and her eyes were completely bloodshot, encircled with thick dark bags that seemed to age her a thousand years. Yet despite her unkempt appearance, Sunset could see a manic happiness dancing behind her eyes, and her whole body seemed to strain with newfound energy.

Unable to hide her unease, Sunset walked past her and entered the kitchen. As usual, it was a wreck, but it seemed that in addition to the usual endless stacks of dirty dishes and bags of trash, the cupboards and fridge had been systemically raided, their emptied contents either lying on the floor or haphazardly piled up on the counter. "Sheesh. Is there anything left in?"

"Probably." Shim didn't take her eyes off Sunset for even a second, shifting around in her seat to face her at all times. Sunset stooped down and pulled a bag of oats from one of the cupboards. Tossing them onto the counter, she flipped the kettle on to boil and turned around once more.

"I hope you didn't stay awake for me. I was staying with my... with a friend. I was thinking some things over last night, and I - I have to tell you something."

Once again, Sunset was surprised to see Shim merely nod, giving her a look that might be best described as fascination. Pulling the note from her pocket, Sunset unfolded it and laid it flat on the table. Shim stared at it for a few moments, eyes widening.

"What is this?"

"It's nothing. Just a scare tactic." Sunset tapped the picture of her in pony form. "This is the bit that gets me. It's too accurate to be based off some brief description or anything like that. I think whoever sent this letter is somepony who knew me back in my home world."

"Your home world?" Shim sounded both surprised and skeptical. "You mean you're..." She stopped. "Never mind. Do you have any idea who it could be?"

Sunset shook her head. "I mean, I wasn't all that sociable back then. Ponies knew who I was - kind of hard when you're the Princess' student and all. But there's no way I could name every single person it could be."

Shaking her head, Shim's fingers grasped at her chin, as if pulling at the air around her face. "Fine. So, what are we going to do about them?"

The kettle's whistling slowly grew louder and louder as the water reached boiling point. As Sunset went to take it off the heat, she could feel Shim's gaze boring into the back of her skull. Returning to the table with a steaming bowl of porridge, she took in a few spoonful's before responding.

"I have an idea. About how to catch them, that is. Question is, what are we going to do with them when we catch them?"

Shim gave her an incredulous look. "Kill them."

Sunset almost choked on her mouthful at the curt and heartless measure of Shim's response. Even if she herself had been thinking the same thing, it was quite a surprise to hear the brutish sentiment echoed by the normally gentle, mild-mannered woman sitting opposite her.

"I... I mean... Wow. That's one solution."

"It's the only solution. What's the alternative? You think we should sit them down and have a discussion?"

Privately, Sunset agreed, but a part of her still couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had expected Shim to put up an enormous fight over this issue, maybe even threaten to turn her in to the police. Perhaps her moral compass wasn't as rigid as Sunset had once believed. Or maybe she, too, was feeling the stress of being hunted by shadowy interdimensional vigilantes.

Shim tapped the table again, the irritation in her voice obvious. "Come on, then. What's your plan?"

Shaking her head, Sunset put aside her musing. "They'll be watching this place. I'm sure of it. But they haven't come breaking down the door yet, so they're waiting for the perfect moment. So, if we give them that perfect moment, we should be able to trick them into doing something hasty."

Shim looked unimpressed. "And what perfect moment would this be?"

"I don't know. We only get one chance to trick them, they're not going to fall for it twice. So, whatever we pick, it has to be a good choice." Sunset gave a weak smile as she realized how half-formed her plan must sound to Shim. "Any suggestions?"

Shim sighed. "It's not a bad idea. But it has to be timed right. How long ago did you get this note?"

"Two days ago. You think we should wait longer?"

Shim held a hand up. "We need to make them think they're running out of time. Make them think they're competing with someone else. Go and write another note, one that looks like this, but more threatening. Attach it to the door whenever you think we aren't being watched." 

Tapping her fingers on the table, Shim's brow furrowed in thought. "That ought to put them on edge. Let's say we give it a week after that. If they haven't slipped up, we fake an overnight raid. Take the door off its hinges, maybe break one of the windows, stuff like that. That should bring them sniffing around. Sound good?"

Sunset nodded slowly, impressed at the speed with which Shim had come up with this scheme. "What if they're watching us round-the-clock? They might have people on shift. We might not..." She trailed off as Shim shook her head. "You don't think so?"

"I seriously doubt it." She tapped the note with her finger. "You're one person, and they've had ample opportunity to snatch you. You said it yourself, they want to put you on edge because they're too afraid to take you head on. If they were operating as a group, they wouldn't waste their time on these games. Just do what I say and we'll be fine."

Something in her voice raised Sunset's hackles - how dare Shim lecture her with that condescending tone? - but she ignored it. Of course, what she said made sense. In fact, it was a better plan than she'd been able to come up with. Running her fingers through her hair, she grimaced at the feeling of oil and grit coating her fingers reminding her that she hadn't bathed in nearly three days.  "I need a shower. I'll write that note, but I'm not expecting miracles."

Shim merely shrugged in response.





Stepping out of the blessing that was her hot shower, Sunset became aware of the soft sounds of talking coming from somewhere else in the apartment. Grabbing a towel and running it through her hair, she paused momentarily, trying to make out some of the words being said. Nothing more than an indistinct murmur made it to hear ears. 

Wrapping the towel around herself, she opened the bathroom door a fraction, the murmur slowly growing louder and more distinct.

"... like I said. No, I wasn't expecting it either. But how could you not know?! I thought you'd been keeping a watch on the place for weeks!"

Shim paused, listening to a response. Sunset waited silently, hoping to catch more. 

"No. There's another problem I have to deal with before I do that." A pause. "Nothing that concerns you. Besides, I need to make sure there won't be any consequences before we act. Can't have everything being messed up now. No, she's in the shower. Fine. Another time." A faint electronic beep was followed by the sound of footsteps and a closing door.

Pulling her clothes back on, Sunset returned to the kitchen. Shim was nowhere to be seen, but a small, cheap-looking phone laid on the kitchen table, apparently unlocked. Hesitantly, Sunset reached out and picked it up. The phone's call history listed only one phone call - to a phone number saved only as "B". Beatrix? Or someone else? Sunset had been under the impression Beatrix didn't know she existed. And besides, Shim had her own phone - what did she need a spare for?

A chill ran down Sunset's spine as she sifted through the phone's contents. No texts, no emails, no photos, nothing. So, not just a spare, but new. She cycled through the phone's various apps, curiosity mounting. Was Shim worried Sunset was monitoring her phone calls? And if so, why? What was Shim discussing that she didn't want her to know about?

The sound of a door handle turning was what caused Sunset to jump. The motion jolted the phone out of her hands, sending it slipping through her fingers and clattering onto the floor before coming to rest incriminatingly at her feet. Shim emerged from her room, eyes widening, then narrowing, at the scene. "What are you doing?" 

She didn't raise her voice, but she didn't need to. Her voice was pure venom, yet mixed with a sense of incredulity, as if astonished by the impudence of Sunset's actions. Sunset raised her hands, stepping away from the phone. "Sorry, I just... I was just looking."

Shim strode across the room and picked the phone up, stuffing it into her pocket. "It's just a temporary phone. None of your business." She glanced at the phone's screen. "I'm going out. Need to pick some things up. I'm sure you can fend for yourself for a few hours."

"You're getting a new phone? Didn't you buy your old one, like, a month ago?"

"I dropped it." Shim brushed the question aside, grabbing her coat and making her way to the front door. "Go and write that note. I won't be back for a few hours, so don't wait up." The door slammed behind her with such force it seemed to shake the entire apartment.

Sunset stood in place for a few minutes, digesting what she had just seen. One part of her wanted to just let it slide - it wasn't any of her business, Shim had made that clear. For all Sunset knew, it really was just a temporary phone. Most people would have the same reaction if they found someone going through their possessions.

But it was the contents of the phone call worried her. If Beatrix knew she existed, there was always the chance she might decide to come tying up loose ends. And what did she mean, "keeping watch"? How many people could be watching one apartment? And what else was Beatrix planning?

She needed to do something. Anything. But not just yet. After all, Shim and her had a common problem in the form of her Equestrian stalker. Better to deal with that together. After that, all bets were off.

Retrieving a pad of paper and some pens from a cupboard, Sunset spent the new few minutes coming up with a suitably threatening note to pin to the door. She finished with a crude drawing of her as a human with a cross through her head, and a death threat underneath invoking both her name and several colourful metaphors. Hopefully, it would be more than enough.

For the next few minutes, Sunset simply laid back on a chair, closed her eyes, and emptied her mind. Not having to worry about who was going to stick a knife in her back next was a luxury she dearly missed. 

The sound of her phone going off was what sucked her out of her personal darkness. A text from Rainbow Dash, all but begging her to visit. A quiet chuckle slipped past her lips at the image of Dash (possibly literally) bouncing off the walls. Rainbow usually wasn't satisfied unless she'd run a half-marathon before lunch. Her fingers danced across the keypad.

Just finishing off crankys worksheet. Will c u in a few. Ur lucky I'm so organized.

As her hand rested on the front door's handle, she glanced back at the note she'd written. She had planned to post it at midnight - but the sooner, the better.

Opening the door, she scanned the surrounding street. There was no sign of unusual movement - a couple pushing a baby stroller, a cat lazily relaxing atop a parked car, and a flock of birds fighting over a sandwich someone had dropped. She hesitated for a second, before deciding. 

Grabbing the pad of paper, she tore off the sheet she'd written on and attached it to the door with a few measures of tape. The second she was sure it was secure, she set off at a brisk pace, heart beating. She was certain she hadn't been seen, but that did nothing to calm her furiously beating heart. Fighting desperately to avoid appearing in any way suspicious, she descended the flight of stairs that lead onto the main street.



 

It was Rainbow's mother, Windy Whistles, who answered the door. She didn't look too happy to see Sunset, but let her in nevertheless. There were heavy bags under her eyes, and her short hair was limp and lifeless. Her name was neatly written on a tag afixed to the uniform she still had on, and she smelt strongly of cleaning chemicals. 

"Rainbow's in her room. Can I get you a cup of coffee?"

Sunset nodded gracefully. "Thanks. How's Bow?"

"He's asleep. You girls don't wake him, you hear? He's got a full shift tonight, and the last thing he needs is to be disturbed." The kettle began to whistle, and Windy turned around to pour two cups of coffee. "Milk or sugar?"

"Both, please." Sunset glanced around at the kitchen. It was cramped, but well-lived. Family pictures seemed to hang from every spare inch of wall space, though notably Rainbow didn't appear to be much older than 10 in every picture she appeared in.

Windy set the steaming mug down in front of her, before taking up the adjacent seat and closing her eyes. Her fingers wrapped themselves around her mug. A powerful smell of coffee emanated from it, though not quite powerful enough to overpower the smell of whisky. "Actually, maybe it's best if the two of you get out of here. Give us both some peace of mind."

Sunset took a light sip from her cup. "Isn't Rainbow still grounded?"

Windy gave a light laugh. "Yes, she is. I'm trusting on you to keep her in line. No brawls, no underage drinking, and no weed. Don't think I don't know what my daughter gets up to when I'm not around. But I have to say, I expected more from you."

Sunset lowered her gaze. "Sorry. But I do try and keep her in line. Last time would have been ten times worse if I hadn't been there."

Windy took a deep drink from her mug, shuddering slightly as she did so. "I don't doubt it." Her eyes darted to the side. "Speak of the devil."

Rainbow stood in the kitchen doorway. She was dressed in loose-fitting athletic gear, her hoodie drawn over her head. "Sunset. Mom."

"How generous of you to grace us with your presence." Windy glanced at the clock, sighing. "Against my better judgement, I'm letting you out of the coop early to spare your father. But you will be back here by nine, or so help me, you'll be grounded for a month. Understand?"

Dash's eyes lit up. "Great! Uh, I mean... sure. Whatever you say, mom." She jerked her head towards the door, staring pointedly at Sunset. "See you outside?"

Sunset nodded, draining her mug in one swift motion as Dash bolted in the background with an ear-splitting whoop. "Thanks for the coffee. I... I have to go."

Windy grimaced. "No problem. Just... don't let me down." She made an attempt at a smile, before giving up midway and waving her away. "You two enjoy yourselves."

Sunset gave her a sympathetic smile and left, closing the door silently behind her. The second she stepped outside, an ecstatic Rainbow grabbed her and dragged her into a rib-crushing hug, squealing with delight.

"You. Are. Fucking. AWESOME!" Releasing her, Rainbow gave her a friendly punch in the shoulder. "I should have known you'd be able to get me out of there. You can talk your way out of anything." She gave a deep bow in mock worship. "Teach me your ways, Master Shimmer."

Sunset couldn't help but laugh. "That's Mistress Shimmer to you. And I didn't do anything. Like your mom said, she's sparing your dad from us."

Rainbow snorted. "Yeah, right. All she's talked about since I got grounded was about how wonderful you are and how much she wishes you were her daughter instead. Well, not really, but you know what I mean." She adopted a simpering accent. "She's such a good student, so well behaved, so polite, so kind for walking you home." Rainbow stopped, grimacing at herself. "But, y'know, thanks for not dumping me on some park bench, I guess."

Sunset pursed her lips but decided not to rock the boat this early. As she'd hoped, Rainbow had no idea she'd been driven home by the apple clan. "No worries. You'd do the same for me, right?"

Rainbow gave a wide, obviously fake smile. "Oh, yeah. Totally. So, what are we gonna do? I mean, we should probably try not to fuck things up too early. I can wait till school on Monday to hospitalize Applejack."

"Yeah, about that." Sunset paused, wondering how best to put Big Mac's proposition to Rainbow. As Sunset deliberated, Dash raised her eyebrows. 

"What?"

"Look... how would you feel about putting it behind you? You and Applejack. I was... I was talking to Big Mac yesterday, and he wants you two to pack it in. Applejack too." Seeing the thunderous expression on Rainbow's face, she held her hands up. "I'm not saying you have to be friends. Hell, you don't even have to apologize. Just stop trying to murder each other."

"Bullshit. I know Applejack, she doesn't do armistices. Why would she ever want to 'put it behind her'?"

"They've got a farm to run, you know. I guess they're tired of you periodically crippling one of their good workhands." Privately, Sunset couldn't blame them.

"Why should I care?" Rainbow sneered. "You can tell those yokels I'll put it behind me when AJ's willing to admit she was wrong and apologize. Until then, don't even bother." Turning her back to Sunset, she stormed off. Sunset sighed and followed suit.