Several Moments Earlier...
Buried under her blankets, Apple Bloom was deviously pretending to be asleep. She had genuinely been asleep only moments before, but that was before the scratching noises came from outside. Right by her window. Ears swiveling, Bloom's eyes snapped open and she buried herself deeper within the security of her bed. Waiting. Watching.
Before too long, a strangely shaped shadow framed itself in her window. Laughing, from the sound of it. She slowly inched higher to get a better look. Small shape, two legged. Enormous ears, curved claws. She'd heard Applejack talking about how much trouble Stitch had caused on previous visits, during nights when she was supposed to be in bed and had resorted to listening in on private conversations instead. But she'd been of the understanding that Stitch had gone home. Heck, she'd even see him a few times. And the shadow was unmistakably Stitch.
Bloom frowned. Did Applejack know about this? Or was Stitch lost again? The figure peered into her open window for a moment, before scampering off again. Bloom leaped out of bed and ran to the window. What if he hurt somepony, or if Applejack didn't even know he was back? Climbing out the window, the filly slid into action. Sliding down the drainpipe, she raced off after him. Moments later, hearing her name being called in the distance. She was so totally getting grounded. Couldn't get ungrounded at this point, so might as well finish what she'd started. She kept following.
"Stitch!" She called. "Come back!"
The alien ignored her. He was running into town, and Apple Bloom was intent to follow him. She raced as fast as she could, but even with earth pony endurance, the alien was smaller and faster. She skidded to a halt near the center of town, eyes darting every which way.
Gone.
"Rats..." she muttered. Moments later, her eyes flickered upwards to the second story window of a lavishly decorated circular building. A building which fortunately had lots of small pebbles scattered around the outside.
Clack.
Clack.
Clack.
"Enough already!" The window swung open, and a small white unicorn gazed angrily down at the street. "Do you have any idea what time it- Apple Bloom!"
"Sweetie Belle! Stitch is back!" Apple Bloom whisper-shouted. It was more of a loud hushed tone, really.
"Stitch? Are you sure?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Yes! I saw him in my window! I chased him but he got away."
"Does Applejack know?"
"I don't know. Does Rarity know?"
"She hasn't mentioned it," Sweetie said.
"Ah don't think either of them know about this," Bloom said. "But ah don't think they know. We could get our alien hunting cutie marks for this! Maybe you'll get a laser blaster on yer flank or somethin'!"
Sweetie's eyes widened. "That. Would be. Awesome. Wait there!" She closed the window, and appeared a few minutes later next to Apple Bloom, coming around the back.
"What took ya so long?"
"Rarity's sleeping. Or working on an outfit. Either way she's not coming out of her room anytime soon, so we gotta hurry. You got a plan for this?"
Apple Bloom beamed. "Uh huh. Celestia said she left a rift out by where the spaceboat crashed the first time. So we just gotta go out there and summon him."
"Summon... him?"
"If we say his name by the rift, it'll summon him. If he's already here, it won't do anything."
"So if he's not already here, we're just going to wind up summoning him anyway. I don't like this plan."
"But he is here! Ah saw him!"
"You're sure?"
"Ah'm sure!"
Sweetie Belle sighed. "What the hay. We've had crazier plans. I'm in. We gonna get Scootaloo in on this?"
Apple Bloom suddenly looked ashamed. "Y'know... ah'm actually not entire sure where Scootaloo lives. Do you know?"
Sweetie Belle's smile faded. "...I don't know where her house is either. It's like a gaping plot hole someone just never filled. Weird. We still gonna do this?"
"We can fill her in later. Let's go!"
With a nod of determination, the two fillies raced into the darkness, towards the crash site they had been to several times before.
The Crash Site
Finding their way in the darkness wasn't nearly as difficult as it had been the first few times. They'd been to the crash site before, and Apple Bloom was more experienced in the paths of the Everfree Forest. The rift Celestia had opened hung in the air just above eye level, barely visible. A small tear in space that was completely undetectable if you were to stare straight at it, only by glancing at it through the corner of her eye could Bloom tell that something wasn't quite right.
"This seems kinda dangerous," Sweetie Belle said. "Can't anyone come out here and accidentally summon aliens?"
"Not possible. Only the Six can do it, so ah figure, by relation, we can do it as well."
"You've been eavesdropping on Applejack again, haven't you?"
"Of course," Bloom admitted. "But only because she doesn't tell me things herself. She's afraid ah'll do somethin' stupid."
"Like come to the Everfree Forest in the middle of the night to summon an alien," Sweetie said.
"Like come to the Ever- hey! This is completely different!"
"Of course it is," Sweetie said. And the two turned to face the rift.
"Stitch!" Apple Bloom announced. Both fillies scampered backwards.
Nothing.
"Stitch!" Sweetie Belle repeated.
Nothing.
"Maybe we gotta say it three times," Bloom suggested.
"That only works on ghosts," Sweetie countered. "It's not gonna work!"
"Or maybe it did work and he's already here like ah told you in the first place."
"GIRLS!"
Both fillies swung around. "Oh, buck, we are so grounded," Sweetie whispered.
Fluttershy emerged from the darkness, a very stern look on her face.
"Are you by YOURSELVES?" She had an empty wicker basket with her that went forgotten for the moment, the unexpected encounter of two small fillies in the Everfree Forest clearly having taken priority.
"Well yes, but-"
"What in Equestria are you doing out here? It's after dark! You're not even supposed to visit Zecora after dark, and we are so far away from her house, don't you dare try to tell me that-"
"Apple Bloom saw Stitch," Sweetie interrupted, and rapidly tried to explain.
"Stitch... the rift... but..." Fluttershy was pale. She didn't particularly care for him, though she didn't want to see any harm come to the alien either.
"You're absolutely, completely sure?" Fluttershy asked.
"Yes! Nopony believes me! How many other Stitches could there be!?"
Fluttershy really didn't want to consider the possibility of there being more than one.
"What are you doing out here anyway?" Sweetie challenged. "I thought you were scared of the dark."
"Oh, I am," Fluttershy said. "But I have to overcome that when it comes to my critters, there's a very delicate mushroom that only grows in the dark, and Angel refuses to eat unless he has it. And I don't want him destroying my coffee table again."
The rift started glowing.
Fluttershy squeaked. "Oh, that can't be good, we should probably get out of here..."
Apple Bloom was confused. "I don't get it, what did we do!?"
As if in reply, a very angry bright pink ball of fuzz shot out of the rift, crashing into Sweetie Belle so violently that they both went to the ground.
Fluttershy and Apple Bloom stared in shock, as the newcomer and Sweetie Belle rose and stared each other down.
"It looks like a girl Stitch!" Bloom exclaimed.
"It looks like trouble..." Fluttershy sighed.
"Can we keep it?!" Sweetie Belle asked, reaching out for the pink alien.
The pink alien hissed, taking a defensive position and whipping one of its antennae at Sweetie Belle, who jumped backwards. Looking more closely once the commotion had settled, Fluttershy noticed that large metal shackles bound its wrists in front.
"Something caught it before we did..." Bloom observed.
"You two have a lot of explaining to do to Twilight," Fluttershy said.
"Is there any chance we can just pretend none of this happened and not tell our sisters?" Sweetie asked.
Fluttershy stared at the two of them so intently that they both retreated several paces.
"Ah didn't think so," Apple Bloom sighed.