//------------------------------//
// Epilogue  
// Story: Anon-a-Miss 
// by Dainn 
//------------------------------//

	It was the middle of February.  The day was surprisingly warm, a welcomed change from the usual cold and gusty weather that Canterlot City had been subjected too during the winter season.

Sunset was sitting all by herself on a park bench.  She had been watching silently as small children played around in the snow while their parents kept a close eye from a distance.

She had been sitting alone for almost an hour, wondering if perhaps she should just turn back and go home.  She still had some extra time left before they were supposed to arrive.  She eventually pushed those thoughts aside and chose to wait patiently.  She had already gone through enough trouble in getting everything together.  No sense in backing out now.

Around 20 minutes later, Sunset was joined on the bench by a single hooded figure.  Sunset recognized her guest almost immediately and frowned with disappointment upon realizing that she had come alone.

“I told all three of you to be here.  Where are your sisters?”

Aria pulled back her hood and shrugged with indifference.  “Adagio is too weak to leave the house and Sonata didn’t want to leave her by herself.  Guess that means that you’re stuck with me.”  The siren narrowed her eyes in annoyance.  “So, what do you want?  And make it quick.  It's freezing out here.”

Aria watched as Sunset reached into her coat pocket and pulled out three necklaces which had small colorless gems attached at the base.  The sirens eyes then widened as she realized what she was looking at.  “Are those … what I think they are?”

Sunset nodded her head twice.  “Twilight agreed to make you all a new set of Heart Stones.  It looks like you and your sisters aren’t going to starve after all.”  Aria quivered with excitement as she reached forward, eager to grab one and place it around her neck, only for Sunset to pull away at the last moment.  “But before I give you these, there’s something that you need to know.  And be sure to tell your sisters what I'm about to tell you.”

Aria rolled her eyes in annoyance.  “Yeah, yeah, I know, I know.  Don’t try to take over the world again, or you and your friends'll stop us, or some stupid mumbo jumbo like that, am I right?”

“Not exactly,” Sunset said while shaking her head.  “Twilight rigged these in order to keep all three of you in check.  See how the stones are clear right now?”

Sunset pointed to the gems and Aria raised an eyebrow.  “So what?” the siren asked.

“She said that that means that there’s almost no energy stored inside at the moment.  As you drain energy from other people, the stones will turn from clear to blue, blue to green, green to yellow, and yellow to red.  As soon as it turns red, you need to stop feeding and give the amulets time to cool back down, otherwise they’ll break.”

Sunset outstretched her hand and allowed Aria to grab all three of the necklaces.  After placing one of them around her neck, the siren could immediately feel a small fraction of her true power being restored, and with it, her primal desire to feed increased tenfold.  She felt absolutely ravenous.  It had been months since the last time that she had been able to feed, and her stomach was demanding that she make up for lost time.

“Tell Adagio that we’re even.  And I hope you guys take good care of those amulets, because Twilight made it clear that she won't be doing you any more favors after this.  And quite frankly, neither will I,” Sunset warned.

“Oh, don’t worry.  We’ll be careful …” A sly smile began to take root while Aria turned her gaze onto the children playing around the park.  “You've got nothing to worry about from us.”

Sunset stood from the bench and then proceeded to walk away.  As she departed, she heard one of the most beautiful and alluring singing voices to ever grace her ears, followed by the sounds of bickering children and quarreling adults.